Baby, It's Cold Outside
by tmwillson3
Summary: It's Thanksgiving, and Sarah's frazzled. What harm can one wish make? Far more than she bargained for. Now, she has a very persistent Goblin King on her hands and somehow must keep him away as she prepares for Christmas. Tis' the season to be merry...
1. Chapter 1: Be Careful What you Wish For

Author's Disclaimer: Hi again, all you wonderful people. I am SO SO SORRY that I have not written in a while. My semester has been so chaotic! I didn't think it was possible to be so busy! Anyways, in apology for staying away so long and not posting another chapter from the other stories (coming soon), I give you, another story! Once again, I do not own Labyrinth, or anyone else in this story. This one is holiday related, all to be done by Christmas. I figure a deadline will help get it out on time. Main idea: Sarah makes a rather careless wish, and in doing so, allows Jareth back into her life, just in time for the holiday season. Naturally, much havoc will be wrought as he makes his rather persistent tries to convince her that they need to be together, all while trying to navigate the many joys of Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Christmas together. Just as FYI: the chapter names are two-fold: the normal one, and the Christmas song that best describes it. I will be switching off between the two names in the chapter names as I go on. I hope you like it!

Baby It's Cold Outside

Chapter 1: Be Careful What You Wish for-I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas

After having a very exhausting morning trying to help fix the turkey for the later Thanksgiving feast, 25-year old Sarah Williams was tired. And frustrated.

It was a well-known fact that she could not cook, even though she had gotten many lessons from the great chef that her stepmother Karen was. Now that she had graduated from college, worked at a newspaper, and had an apartment of her own she was now quite grown up, and ready to handle grown-up duties, like helping Karen with the turkey. Sadly, it still didn't mean that her cooking was any better. Poor Karen was doing her best to counteract the fact that Sarah still couldn't cook, but it didn't help since preparing the turkey required many hours and much patience and gentleness, something Sarah did not have in the kitchen.

It didn't help that Sarah was afraid of peaches. And had been afraid of them ever since that fateful day when she had eaten one in the Labyrinth, those ten years ago. It was one of the few bad memories of the Labyrinth, since she loved her friends, who gave her much inspiration to write, and going through the Labyrinth had taught her much and helped her grow up. Heck, she even liked Jareth, a little. It only took a couple years of reflection to see Jareth had told the truth, acting as she wanted him to, but that still didn't help their last meeting. It had always bothered her: did he love her, or not? The romantic in her said yes, but the realist said no, it wasn't possible. It was this indecision and worry about him that made her hesitate to touch or eat peaches. And then that translated into cooking in general, much to Karen's dismay.

Meanwhile, in the household, Toby, now older and talking, was singing Christmas music at the top of his lungs, in particular, "I want a hippopotamus for Christmas". After winning her little brother back, Sarah had always loved Toby very much, except when he sang that song. Unfortunately, it was his favorite song, since he actually liked hippos, and since he was rather young, he was also tone deaf as he sang it at the top of his lungs over and over again for everyone to hear.

After listening to Toby singing so much, having the stuffing turn out bad, having misshapen turkey from being dropped, and rather pungent gravy, Sarah had had it in the kitchen. Frustration had won over, and so, being a responsible adult, she did the only thing she could to relieve stress: go to the backyard out of hearing so she could vent. Vent about Toby, about the bad food, about her lonely life of not having a date in over a year (How was she too picky? She didn't require a man to move the stars for her, just love her for herself.), and of being forced to watch football, the silliest sport in the world. Why would men willingly hurt themselves and others in order to chase after a strangely shaped ball? And why did college students feel such a need to celebrate it every weekend and wake her up with their drunken shouting? Overall, it was turning out to be a very bad day, even though Thanksgiving was her second favorite holiday after Christmas. Christmas had a special place in her heart and in her family. Either way, she was upset, and after hearing that confounding song all morning, all she could think of was in terms of "I want" or "I wish".

This, in and of itself wasn't bad, it had happened before. The problem was that she was seriously contemplating wishing for something, even though she knew he wouldn't hear her any more, or so she assumed after refusing him and beating him. But, she had always been careful. Oh well, today was already going badly, so it really couldn't get much worse she figured. It would be nice to use the w-word again, too.

"I wish the turkey was perfect, right now!" She felt so much better being able to get that out of her system. She just wanted to have a nice family holiday and help out in whatever way she could. She only wished she could do that. Because that would imply making good food to enjoy, and having a boyfriend to make her family happy. That most _certainly _was not going to happen soon, but so is life.

However, there was an old saying, and it goes like this: be careful what you wish for.

No sooner had Sarah said it than suddenly, Karen came running outside, looking quite dumbfounded.

"Sarah! Sarah! Sarah! You remind me of myself, when I first started cooking. How?"

"How what, Karen?"

"How did you do it? The power to do it."

"What power?"

"The power to keep that joke to yourself."

"Who, me?"

"Yes, you."

"Do what?"

"Have the power to pass off that joke about not being able to cook. I saw you crying about not doing the turkey properly. So I thought, 'What should I do?' And then I saw your brother doing his special hippo dance, so I figured I would just see how bad it was, and add a few things to make it better, and pass it off as yours. I go to check, and there it was, that turkey. All brown and perfect, ready to go, smelling delicious, and all the gravy and stuffing nearby. I was so shocked. I considered doing my own little dance when I realized you could cook! I'm so proud of you!"

And then, Karen proceeded to hug Sarah, who was by now very worried and concerned for what had happened, so she began leading Karen back to the turkey to see with her own eyes. It had to be a mistake. It couldn't be anything else.

No such thing.

Never had the kitchen smelled better in all her life, and Sarah was royally confused. That left only one option: the wish must have been heard. Which meant only one thing: what about Jareth?

However, she was not left long to consider the question, as it was soon answered when she suddenly heard Toby yelling, "Hey! Check it out! A white owl! In our front yard! That is so cool!"

Sarah knew what that meant; she was going to have to answer the door.

Author's Note: Sugar cookies for finding the Labyrinth song reference! No, it is not a cliff hanger, as the next chapter is coming out soon after. And we all know who is waiting…

I hope you like it! -tmwillson3


	2. Chapter 2: Welcome to the Family

Author's Disclaimer: Hi again! Once again, I still don't own Labyrinth. Also, guess what? It's time to meet our favorite tight-panted male! Enjoy!

Baby It's Cold Outside

Chapter 2: Welcome to the family-(There's no place like) Home for the holidays

Sarah ventured to the front yard, shooing Toby away saying that those owls were dangerous, and one had to be older and more careful to deal with them, so she would take care of it on her own. To make sure she wasn't watched, she sent him to the backyard to prepare the yard for the annual Williams football game. After that, she went to go face him, uncertain of what to expect.

By the time she turned around after closing the door, she no longer saw the owl in the tree, instead, she only heard footsteps crunching the fallen leaves in the yard. She looked up, and saw him for the first time in a long, long time.

And did he look good.

Drat it all. Why were the dreams never better than the real thing?

"Hello, Sarah. Fancy seeing you again after all this time. I thought you'd never wish for something again, the way you were going. Not that I'm upset you did, as it is high time you did. You sounded miserable, and you needed me. Thankfully, something finally clicked. Well, here I am, to make all things better. How can I help?"

Sarah was in shock. And awe. And trying desperately hard to process everything he had just said, realizing that something not quite right was said, in addition to the part about being upset and getting better, but this was no time to consider all those implications….

"I, I, I-"

"Am rather curious to know why a turkey needs to be perfect for today, but that can wait. Well, are you going to introduce me to your family or not?"

Whoa. _What _did he just say?

"Wait! Hang on a second! Do you hear what you are saying?"

"Oh yes, quite clearly. Why? Do you think me in jest, or unsure of what I say? I can promise you, I am fully aware of what I am saying, and what I want. And I intend to make you fully aware of it, too, now that you have finally let me back into your life. So, shall we continue this conversation in your home, or mine? It's cold outside here. Much warmer back at my place, with a fire, hot cocoa, a bed-"

He had now managed to walk up to her, put his arms around her, and pressed his body up against her, making it even harder for her to think coherently. Worse, he was now making circles on her hands with his fingers in delightful ways that she was having trouble ignoring… Snap out of it! You are _not _being manipulated into going to the Underground, no matter how nice he is being!

"No. Jareth, we need to talk, but not right now. My family is waiting for me; I need to get back inside, and you need to leave, now."

"I don't think so, precious. Not any time soon if I can help it."

"Oh, you will, you arrogant, assuming-"

But she was cut off from making any more complaints about him since he chose that moment to kiss her, quite senseless in fact. And in a very good way. She hadn't felt that feeling in a really long time, the way he kissed, with all his pent-up emotions, passion, and desire for her, as he hungrily ravished her mouth, kissing hard and long, using his tongue as much as possible, goading her into responding back with equal force. Before too long, she too had her arms around his neck, angling herself to better receive him in her mouth, and even moaned once, enough to make Jareth grin and then growl as well with his pleasure.

But she was not to be an exhibitionist forever.

For that was when Sarah suddenly heard the strangled gasp of Karen, who had become worried about Sarah being outside with that owl for so long, that she had come to investigate, only to find Sarah in the arms of an older man, who most obviously liked Sarah. Now, Sarah would have to stop.

"Sarah? Who is this? And why haven't you told us you are dating again? I'm so happy for you! Though I do wish you had told us sooner, so that we could set up an extra place for him at the table, but this is wonderful news! Wait until Robert hears this! Come on inside, you two. You'll catch cold out here, it is so cold outside. Come inside and meet the family, whoever you are. You are very welcome to, I promise!"

And with that, Karen rushed inside to tell the rest of the family, while Sarah was greatly confused, and worried about what she would have to explain, until she looked up and saw the satisfied grin on Jareth's face as he looked at the front door, and saw what he had done.

"You jerk! You knew that was going to happen, and you did that on purpose, didn't you?"

"Of course. It was the only way to ensure that I would be able to come inside and spend time with you and meet your family."

"You are _not _going into that house-"

"And that is where you are wrong. I have already been cordially invited by Karen, and I couldn't pass up such an open and welcoming invitation like that and be rude, could I?" He was smiling so much right now, and there was nothing she could do about, literally or figuratively. Part of her brain refused to function as she saw him smile like that, the other part of her knew that he would get in somehow, despite her protests. Oh well, no way to stop now. She could only hope that he would be nice. At least now she would make her family really happy to see her with someone.

If only there were some way to make things easier for her to deal with Jareth. She wasn't ready to deal with him, as she quickly discovered. He was still very much the predator from the Labyrinth and seducer from her dreams. And that was when she thought of it. "I'll invite the goblins to come over too! I bet they would like that!" That was easy enough since they visited her regularly once a month, so that she could give them chocolate and receive inspiration for writing how-to articles on working with children. She just had to call them in her mind (how that happened, she still didn't entirely know, but was not worried by it). It was right after she called them that Jareth looked at her just as they were going inside.

"Sarah, what did you just do?"

"Me? Nothing. Why?"

"Well, I could have sworn you just used your magic to call the goblins to visit you again, and I can't imagine why you want to do that now when you have me here to keep you company. No matter, perhaps I am imagining things."

"Wait a second. I have _magic_? Since when did I get magic?"

"Sarah, how can you forget? You memorized that book at one point in your life. Do I have to repeat it? 'But what no one knew-'"

"Oh, that. I see. Is that why I can see them whenever?"

"Yes. Though I still don't see why you would want to, since they just trash whatever place they are visiting."

"Well, that isn't the case when they visit me. In fact, I have shown them how to clean up after themselves very well when they visit my apartment."

"Then count yourself lucky. It certainly does not carry on to other places they go."

"I see. I'll keep that in mind."

It was then that Sarah's father, Robert came to the door. He looked appropriately shocked upon seeing Jareth, and so it greatly pleased Sarah that the next words out of Robert's mouth were, "So, you're the new boyfriend. Please come in. If I so much as see you upset Sarah in any way today, you will be thrown out of this house, personally. Whether by hand, foot, or shovel, you will. Just as a warning. Today is a special day for Sarah and the family, and I don't want you messing it up. Welcome to the family."

It was on days like this when Sarah was glad to have the family she had, and that she still celebrated with them so that she would not be left alone with him today. Instead, they would meet on her turf this time, at her home. There's no place like home for the holidays.

Author's Notes: After all, if you are from a northern area, Thanksgiving does tend to be a little cold. Why not try to take advantage of it? Also, for all reviews for the first two chapters, they will be included on the first chapter not written by then. Enjoy! -tmwillson3


	3. Chapter 3: Goblins with a Capital T

Author's Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own Labyrinth. I wish I did, but still no luck from Jareth. It's time for Jareth to meet the family, but will they welcome him? And why are there goblins around? It's a rather long chapter, sorry about that. I am trying to make the next shorter to make up for it, and hopefully the rest will be shorter in general. Confound my general verbose-ness. Either way, I hope you like it! It's time for some fun with Jareth, in all the right ways….

Baby It's Cold Outside

Chapter 3: Goblins, with a capital T-Nuttin' for Christmas

Upon entering the house with Jareth, Sarah felt relieved. All her family was there, ready to hear all about Jareth. Oh dear. But what on earth to tell?

She was going to need a few moments alone with him, to pick a simple story that would explain how they met and why he was here now. Simple enough, right?

Sadly, it was only then that Sarah also noticed the tell-tale small shadows of the goblins as they came running into the home, and she was reminded of what Jareth had said, that nothing carried on. She only hoped he was wrong. However, Jareth also noticed.

"Precious one, might I have a word with you? Privately? It will only take one moment, I promise." He said the first part to her, the second part to her family. And with that, he proceeded to look rather angrily at her.

"Am I right to assume that you are reordering time right now?"

"That is correct."

"Good, because now we need to have a cover story for you, as to why you are showing up now, of all times. I hope you brushed up on your improvisation before coming down…"

"You called the goblins, didn't you?"

"What does that matter?"

"Sarah. You are avoiding the question. I want an answer. Now."

"Fine, yes I did. I thought they might enjoy this holiday since it has so much food."

"Sarah," he said warningly.

"Yes, Jareth, I know what I'm doing. And no, you cannot order them back. They stay. Or else you go with them. Double or nothing."

The look he gave her could have frozen water on the spot. Worse, he looked menacing enough that he might challenge her, which was something she did not want to have happen. So she did the smart thing, and beat him to it.

She kissed him on the cheek, and said as sweetly as she could, "Now Jareth, do you want to make me happy or not? I don't ask for much, just to let them hang around. And I would hate to have my father see me look unhappy….."

Luckily for her, it worked like a charm. Jareth immediately straightened up, raised an eyebrow at her sudden change, but upon letting the kiss do its work, he smiled, touched the lucky cheek, and said, "Of course, Precious One. If that will make you happy, then I am more than happy to give it to you. Now, you are going to have to tell me what holiday this is that we are celebrating exactly-"

And that was when the time went back to normal, and of course the family heard the last part of his statement, making them all gasp with the sudden knowledge that he knew nothing of Thanksgiving.

"What do you mean you don't know which holiday we are celebrating?" said Toby.

"I'm afraid I'm not from around here, so I don't know about all the traditions that you do, so you are going to have to tell me all about it."

"We would be more than happy to, Jareth, as soon as you tell us where it is exactly you come from. And how you came to know Sarah," replied Robert.

While Sarah was inwardly cursing herself for forgetting to bug Jareth about a story to tell everyone, Jareth was more than ready to tell everyone the version he had already planned on telling them upon arriving Aboveground.

"Naturally, you must be curious as to how I was so lucky to meet and end up dating the delightful Sarah. Please, sit down. I am more than happy to tell you. Except you, of course, dear Sarah. You are very well familiar with it, and I would feel so much more comfortable telling everyone if you were to come over here and let me hold your hand while I tell them. Please?"

Naturally, when he said it like that, with the pleading, innocent look on his face, she was virtually forced to do so, even though she didn't want to. No matter. If he was ready to tell, then do tell away. Meanwhile, the rest of her family proceeded to sit down and looked quite excited to hear the story.

"Yes, as it so happens, Sarah and I go quite far back. It was sometime in high school when we first met, but at that point, I had only recently come here, to visit as an exchange student for one semester. You see, I am actually originally from England, if you could not tell by the accent. When I decided to move to the US, I decided it would be nice to move to the area where I had previously been, and then joined the newspaper as a journalist, as I had previously in London. And once I was there, naturally I saw Sarah again, and she was quite nice to me, so I thought it best to push my luck as much as possible and ask her out while I was still new. The rest is history, as we have been going out for approximately two weeks, and we didn't want to tell anyone until it was official. Sorry about that. We thought it would be a special treat for you all to hear at once. Did we surprise you?"

Based on the gaping mouths seen on the parents' faces, and a smile on Toby's face, it most definitely had been a surprise. Well, it worked. Now she just to remember that story to tell the rest of her family when they came. After that, it was only a matter of time to get Jareth adjusted.

Within an hour, Jareth had had the entire story of Thanksgiving explained to him by Toby, who more than enthusiastic to see him, and even more excited when he was able to convince Jareth to come join him outside to play with his b.b. guns. That was such a mistake on his part, but Sarah felt no pity at all for the assuming jerk coming into her Thanksgiving like that. At least now he would become a proper member of the family by the best means: that of being shot at and hit by dearest Toby, who had really great aim for being so young. How he had managed to get a hold of one was clear evidence of how much Sarah's family loved _A Christmas Story_.

Poor Jareth had no idea what hit him, or how. But, he managed as gracefully as possible, making a mental note never to buy such things for the goblins, not even realizing that even at that moment, the goblins watched, wide-eyed and quite excited to get their hands on some so they could play and hit the king with them too. Such small, magical bullets ought to give hours and hours of fun, and more stuff to hit the chickens with too….

When Jareth finally came in, he came in, rubbing his head, and when Sarah saw the damage of two fine bumps on the head, she actually looked nervous for a moment. Within minutes, she had ice for him, telling him to sit and relax on the sofa as she looked after him to make sure that he was alright. Of course he was fine; heck, he could cure the bumps himself, but why on earth would he do that when he could have Sarah fussing over him instead? So much more enjoyable, perhaps it was worth being hit by the small little thingys and not trying to hit Toby back after all…..

Meanwhile, Sarah was quite worried. Mostly about her brother and how to keep Jareth from becoming upset at having such bumps on his kingly brow. And then wanting to punish the one who had put them there. She should have seen this coming, but no, sweet revenge was what she had wanted. How sweet indeed. At least he was taking it well. Perhaps if she fussed over him just a little more, he would even forget about the whole incident.

After ten minutes of such fussing over his head, though, Sarah was having difficulty breathing, as Jareth was not making it easy to ignore him. The way his eyes followed her, the way he smelled so wonderful after having snow and b.b's thrown at him, and how delicious he looked as he smiled, perhaps was even smirking-

No, you mustn't think of such things, she told herself. It would not do to let him distract you any more than he already does. Stupid, insufferable man. Unfortunately, he had such nice, long fingers, and they felt so good when he laced them through her hair like that, and even more so when he pulled her against him and began kissing her ever so softly…

No doubt Jareth had great plans for kissing Sarah senseless given the chance, and no doubt he would have succeeded, except for one slight detail: there were others in the house, and some of those others happened to be rather short creatures that had far too imaginative minds for their own good. Some enjoyed watching the happy couple; others took advantage of the happy moment to go steal what cool toys they could find. Soon they were showing the rest the goodies they found, and it was then that the giggling began. Sadly, Jareth heard them, and was most seriously displeased at being interrupted and watched.

It only took one ugly look of "To the bog!" for them all to disappear into other parts of the home to wait out his anger, and in that moment, Sarah finally had a moment of mental clarity, since she could now think properly since essence of Goblin King was no longer intoxicating her senses. And she picked that as a great time to see that he was healed properly, and she thought it best to get out of his lap, and run off to the kitchen, succeeding in making Jareth even more upset that his best laid plans were dashed and put to waste. No matter, he would find another time; though, as soon as the doorbell rang, he realized that he was going to have to wait a little while longer to find that moment when there were so many others now coming inside to invade the family home.

And such a large group they were. And even louder still. At least they weren't as shrill as the goblins when they tried to sing, that was a mercy.

Thankfully, the combination of Toby yelling, "Hey! Sarah now has a boyfriend!" and the parents explaining what had transpired soon rendered Sarah and Jareth unnecessary to tell any part of the story, much to Sarah's delight. The only problem with this situation was that now everyone assumed Sarah had a boyfriend, and none other than Jareth of all people. _That _could be a problem later when she sent him away. Worse still, she was forced to sit next to Jareth all the time and suffer through the insinuations made by the entire family (her uncles saying how he had carried away the brightest jewel of the country, and her aunts taking note of how much fun they would have together later, what with Jareth's many manly attributes).

However, this was not the worst part of the day by any means. For naturally, when all the men played football, Jareth had to join (watching him get pounced on was fun, and promised to be even more fun, except for….) and then when he was not winning right away, the goblins decided to join the fray, in the only way they could. They used their new-found toys to shoot bullets at the football in order to kill it, and after destroying two footballs, everyone was most confused how Jareth kept making footballs appear from behind his back (naturally, he was a minor magician), and when the goblins realized that he needed a football, they began pelting the other team with bullets, so Sarah eventually had to take away the new toys. After a particularly painful game, Jareth's team naturally won, which made him happy, and Sarah looked rather perplexed.

The "I told you so" look on Jareth's face said much, so Sarah chose to ignore him, and went to take care of all the wounds on the opposite team. She managed to avoid him for a while after that until dinner was announced, at which point, he took her arm rather forcefully, and then kissed her. This received a chorus of "Awwww's" from the collective audience, who were soon making catcalls, and encouraging him to do it again, until Karen announced the food was now possible to grab, at which point all was forgotten in a frenzy to eat all of the wonderful food in front of them.

The big problem came when half of the food magically disappeared in front of everyone, and thankfully, all were too distressed to notice the pained looks on Jareth's and Sarah's faces, and how Jareth suddenly made a crystal appear in his hand, when suddenly the food was all back. Everyone sighed with relief, disaster was avoided, and the all was well with the world.

Jareth really wanted the goblins to leave after that incident, but Sarah refused. This made the goblins quite happy, promising to be on their best behavior for the rest of the day. Jareth had his revenge when the dessert was served, and one of the pumpkin pies had completely disappeared. It was then that the goblins realized that they were getting nothing for Christmas, based on Sarah's looks. Jareth immediately sent them away, which made Sarah rather upset, and so when she was putting whipped cream on her dessert, she "accidentally" sprayed some cream on Jareth's face, causing quite a stir at the table, as Jareth soon responded with some of his food being thrown at her, missed her entirely, and hit Toby, who then threw some in Jareth's direction, eventually hitting another family member, and from there, it just took off.

Somehow, in the aftermath, Jareth never got any on him except the little bit of cream, whereas Sarah soon had cherry topping all over her shirt and face, not to mention a fair amount of butter in her hair, courtesy of Toby. But, if there was one thing that Jareth knew how to do, it was how to take advantage of a situation, so naturally, he made a proposition to Sarah.

"Sarah, I would be _most-willing _to help you get rid of your most adorable cherry and buttered-up face, under two conditions."

"And what would those be, dear Jareth?"

"Only this: that you will go for your first official date with me, now that everyone knows, and that I will be invited here for your next big family holiday, as in Christmas."

That seemed reasonable enough to Sarah. She had been worried something more embarrassing would be asked of her, so she readily agreed. "In that case, I accept your offer. When can you start?"

"Right now in fact, dear Sarah." And with that, Jareth proceeded to kiss Sarah again, only this time, he used his tongue a great deal more as he kissed her entire face. Next, he put his hands around her waist, magically cleaning her before anyone realized how dirty she was, and then he ran his hands through her hair, something he had been wanting to do again since earlier.

When he finally stopped his attentions to her, they realized they had quite an audience watching, at which point, they began cheering because he still wanted to kiss her after looking like quite a fright. The other people, all much younger, chose to hide their eyes, as it was quite gross to watch.

"You heard her, I hope?" Jareth said. "She has agreed to go on yet another date with me. This is something to greatly rejoice in. Let's celebrate!"

He was in a good mood the rest of the night, and Sarah felt bad trying to remove him from her side, as he was quite pleasant in that mood, so ready and willing to put up with her family, and to play their games.

When everyone finally left, it was most reluctantly, as it had been a good time, despite the rather odd occurrences. And, everyone made sure to wish Jareth all the best of luck in going on another date.

Jareth was the last to leave, and after lingering as long as possible, trying to convince Sarah to come back to the castle with him to "talk". Sadly, she was most insistent upon staying there, and not allowing him to come visit her after she went to her room. Somehow, it would seem too stalkerish, whatever that meant. So, he had to console himself with the idea of making a cell phone for himself, getting Sarah's number, and resorting to calling her when he wanted to go on another date. Toby kept telling him how he should never text to ask her out, always call. He replied that he would do it in person instead. He did not fully appreciate all the implications of having such access to her as of yet, but no doubt, he would in time. After one last lingering kiss, he asked Sarah to join him outside.

"Sarah, are you sure you don't want to come back with me? It's so cold here. Much warmer in my castle…."

"No, Jareth. If you really want me to come there, make sure that we go on our date there. Otherwise, don't count on it."

"Duly noted, Precious One. Would you mind terribly if it was there?"

"No, I just don't want to go there tonight."

"How about tomorrow?"

"Sorry, I can't. I have to go shopping tonight and tomorrow. It's Black Friday, and there are gonna be some really good shopping deals, and I want to get going on my Christmas shopping."

"Shopping?"

"Yes, something I very much enjoy doing."

"Really? Then may I join you?"

"I suppose. How bad could it be if I had some company? Perhaps you could reorder time to go faster if necessary. Sure. Be back here in another hour." 

"Can't I just stick around then?"

"Oh, alright, but just this once."

"Thank you, Precious. I promise to be on my best behavior."

"Ha. By the time the shoppers are done with you, you will be wishing that you could be with the goblins."

"I rather doubt that, Sarah. The goblins are pretty bad."

"You've never gone Black Friday shopping before. I am a pro; I am used to it and have enough patience. You, on the other hand, will not have much. Try not to send too many to the bog, ok?"

"Of course, Precious. Whatever you say."

Author's Notes: Candy canes to the person who finds the Pride and Prejudice references! What will happen to dear Jareth as he embarks on his first Black Friday? Will he be victorious? Will he win Sarah over? So many questions! I hope you like it! -tmwillson3


	4. Chapter 4 Part 1: Santa Baby

Author's Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own anything, not Labyrinth, nor the poem "'Twas the Night Before Christmas". All rights go to the respective people. With that in mind, let's go back to the story! It's time to see whether Jareth is up to the challenge of Black Friday, if it is a "Piece of cake" or not. I hope you like it!

Baby, It's Cold Outside

Chapter 4 Part 1: Santa Baby

'Twas the night before Black Friday, when all through the house,

Not a creature was stirring, not even a goblin.

The car was quite empty, empty with much care,

In hopes that much Christmas shopping would soon be held there.

Sarah and Jareth were decked up to go, not going to their beds,

While visions of endless shopping carts danced in their heads.

And with all but the most stalwart and crazy souls wearing their caps;

Everybody else was smart enough to go to bed for a nice, long nap.

When all of a sudden, there arose such a clatter,

For Jareth and Sarah had come into the parking lot to buy what mattered.

Away to the store they had come in a flash,

But upon seeing no spots available, Jareth sent the car home with a sash.

And this is where we join our brave souls, Sarah and Jareth, as they enter into the fray.

Let us hope that they will buy as much as they play.

They had only been there for less than five minutes, and already Jareth was getting frustrated. He had hoped to be able to park the car immediately, while dropping Sarah off in line to wait, but after 30 minutes, he was still no closer to finding a parking spot, so he did the only thing he could do: reorder time to get back the wasted 30 minutes, join Sarah, and send the car home. Naturally, they could just travel as he did, which would make everything so much easier and interesting…

"That was fast, Jareth. You found a spot already? I'm impressed. Normally, I thought you'd be frustrated to no end just having to wait."

"If only, Precious. I tried for a half-hour, got nowhere, was frustrated, and simply reordered time to get rid of the car, so that we just have to flash in everywhere."

"Oh. I see. So it wasn't the walk in the park you expected, huh?"

"Not quite. No matter, I'm here now, so let's start shopping and be done already."

"Not so fast, Mister Impatient. See this line? These are all the people that waited even longer than us and got here before us, so they go before us. And, we have to wait for the store to open their doors. I'm surprised you didn't make a few cars disappear, or let the goblins wreak havoc on the lot so you could get the best spot. Or for now, to reorder time and convince less people to come here where we are."

"Believe me, Precious, I did consider it. And still might, depending on how long we wait. But, I actually prefer not using a car; it Is just a waste for us when you have me anyways. Just think of how warm we will be together like this-"

"Do you ever get tired of mentioning that?"

"No. Not when it is much colder here than Underground, and you are so conveniently close-by and cold. I for one am a big supporter of snuggling, aren't you?"

For a moment, Sarah considered the prospect of snuggling with him, got too excited by the idea, and so decided that was definitely not going to help her be ready to shop, so she shook her head, afraid to speak.

Jareth took it well-enough, and to make up for it, he simply put out his arms around her, thus allowing them both to be much warmer. In order to placate Sarah, he asked her a dangerous question, why they were shopping to begin with, and what to look for exactly.

"So, Sarah, what are we looking for again?"

"Well, right now we are at Walmart. They have huge deals on toys for Toby, and appliances for Karen. Once we get those, we look for DVD's to watch for ourselves. After that, we will go to the mall, where they have several stores of interest there. But let's start here. Now, once the store opens, and people go inside, you are not allowed to reorder time for any reason, understood?"

He nodded sadly.

"Good. Also, even if I can't find what I want, that does not mean you can force people to give their stuff to me, nor send any of them to the bog for taking what I want, nor can you simply magic up whatever I need. There is a certain satisfaction gained in shopping for it yourself, not in simply being given it, so don't bother trying. Ok?"

"I see. But there are so many less ways to have fun then."

"Don't worry, I have complete faith in you that you will find a way around my rules in order to get what you want. Try not to raise too much havoc, though, ok? Such as no fire alarms, since it won't help me by having it go off."

"Fine, fine. Fun sucker."

"Ruler-bender."

"At least mine is more fun."

"At least mine won't get us in trouble with the cops or security."

"Minor details, all minor details…."

And so, for another hour, they waited in line, talking about various topics. When the store finally opened, they ran inside, Jareth immediately crystal-ing them to the toy section, so that they could grab what Sarah wanted. Sadly, all the good ones had gone, as Jareth watched another smirking mother run off with the toy in question under her arm, pushing away past other desperate patrons.

But, that was not going to stop Jareth from bending the rules ever so slightly. Just because he couldn't, didn't mean the goblins couldn't. So, he immediately summoned them, explained how to win favor by causing trouble, and how to find certain items, and make the gifts unwanted. Trip, drop, disappear, it did not matter, as long as they got what Sarah wanted.

And they were only too happy to help Lady Sarah and make up for the bad manners earlier that day. Not to mention that they were allowed to do whatever else they wanted to people. Oh the fun and food they could have….

"Well, come on, Sarah, let's keep watching and walking. Maybe you will get lucky."

"I rather doubt it. I guess we can try the appliances, if there is any better luck there."

"Only one way to find out. Let's go, Precious. I'm sorry it didn't work out."

"It's fine. I will try elsewhere or something. No big deal."

"That's my Sarah, always being brave. But you don't have to be, not always. That's why you have me, for strength and support. Lean on me, Sarah, I will guard you; keep you safe from all harm. Let me love you and hold you close. And would you look at that? Can you imagine that?" he said quite gleefully. "It seems someone no longer wanted that toy that you so wanted. Fancy that. It must be our lucky day."

That was no accident, and Sarah knew it. She couldn't explain, but perhaps it was partly because Jareth had actually been serious for once. Worse, he said the word love. She still had no idea how he felt toward her, nor did she know how she felt toward him. Worse, she saw the woman, as somehow she ran into a person, screamed, called them a bad word, dropped the toy, and ran off. That was no coincidence. But who was she to let a good toy go to waste?

"Well, in that case, let's continue on. Hopefully we will have as much luck with the appliances."

They then walked rather briskly through the store. It was impossible to walk leisurely, what with hundreds of people pushing their way through the store, scouring it for every deal imaginable. Worse, there were quite a few pushy people, both literally and figuratively. It took all of Sarah's strength not to let Jareth send two different mothers to the bog who wanted her toy, and at least three other men who pushed past Sarah, one too close for comfort, the other two pushing and trying to make small talk and grab at her in the process. Heck if Jareth would let anyone near Sarah, except for himself.

Finally, upon coming to the appliances, Sarah immediately found what she wanted, since it was in such large stock by some miracle (not realizing how many people stood at a ten foot perimeter around the shelf, trying to grab one, and then having pieces of ceiling magically fall in front of them to block their path as they moved forward). On the way back, Jareth mentioned that the goblins were there too, having a bit of fun and doing him a favor, at which Sarah laughed outright. Now it all made sense why. Yes, he somehow managed to do it. Even better, now she could watch with Jareth as the goblins had fun in the already busy store.

By the time they left, after having waited only twenty minutes in line (somehow the carts refused to go into the line, and boxes simply fell to the ground far away from the line), Sarah and Jareth had had a good time laughing at all the hapless people trying to deal with goblin foolishness. That cans of food and Santa hats now floated through the store, and people tripped over one another every ten seconds, and shelves kept rearranging themselves in order of aisle and height, was all a great mystery to ponder. Ah, the joys of being a goblin.

After depositing the gifts in Sarah's room via magic, the fearless duo went to the local shopping outlet mall, in search of sporting goods for Robert, and clothing/books for Sarah. The wait for entering the mall was rather long, not to mention cold, so Jareth took the liberty of putting a shield around them that kept out the cold and wind, and allowed them to make a fire for themselves as they waited. It was when they were almost to the front that the Christmas music from inside began to waft through their ears, that song being "Santa Baby". Jareth was quite intrigued by the song and what the demanding lady was asking for from "Santa cutie". Sarah soon explained.

"Basically, the premise is that if a person is nice, I.e. treats others well, doesn't break the law, is an angel, then Santa will give the gift that that person wants most. However, in this song, instead of just one gift, there are several, of various types and values and sizes. It's rather a silly song, if you ask me. I once sang it in glee club in college, and it was a big hit for all the silly stunts pulled."

"Really? So you sang it in front of a large group? Including men?"

"Oh yes. Men were in the club too. We had a lot of fun. I could even show you the video if you really wanted to see it. It's not that long, and we still got a little time."

"I'd love to see it. Where?"

"On my phone. Here. Just watch."

And so he did. And he liked. Very much indeed. It was a very interesting video, one that he wanted to have on his phone for all time, even better than the crystal in some ways. The cell phone was becoming more and more appealing by the minute. Being able to watch Sarah dance in that skimpy red mini-skirt with black fishnet stockings, a skintight red top with red fluff across the top and bottom, and a strange red hat with white fluff, grinning while lifting her arms in the air as if to call someone while doing the cancan, made it all worth it to have it. As he listened, he began to understand the lyrics better, and there were ideas being formed in his mind, which he very much wanted to indulge in. But how to do it? Oh the joys of shopping.

That was when he realized that Sarah was still cold. She was going to need a new coat. He could fix that. Wasn't a sable just a very furry coat after all, that happened to be very warm and expensive? Not a problem for him. He just grinned as he put his arm around her, telling her that he didn't mind doing more cuddling, anytime she felt like it. She just gave him a hard look, combining "Please don't go there right now" and "Did you really just say that? I really want to, but principles require me to say otherwise."

And Jareth just chuckled to himself, and he made himself more comfortable with her, until someone began yelling, "Hey lovebirds! Get a room! Then we can get your stuff! Ha ha ha ha! Let the serious shoppers do their work while you go do your own thing. Just don't let her near your checkbook! She might take you for everything you got!"

It took all of Sarah's protesting and arm-restraining methods to make Jareth stay and not bog that assuming, busy-body jerk of a guy right on the spot. Or at least beat the crap out of him. That still held some potential, as no doubt the goblins would take good care of him once they got in the same store with him. Sarah rather pitied the poor guy now. No telling what form of practical joke would be played on him as he tried to go shopping. So Sarah did the next best thing: distract Jareth with talk of her video and clothing, as no doubt his mind would go to far more interesting places rather quickly, considering what she was wearing in that video.

"So, Jareth, you never told me. Did you like the video?"

"Oh, very much. I could watch it many more times and never grow tired of watching it. But you don't want any of that stuff in real life? You wouldn't want any of those gifts that the woman asks for? None at all? You'd be happy with just some clothing and books?"

"Well, it depends. It depends on which of those gifts you are giving me," she said with a smile. "I will never say no to a nice coat, or turn down a new blue mustang. Those are pretty awesome to drive, I'm not gonna lie. But, I'm a realist, so I will expect nothing. Men I know and date do not have that kind of money to throw around, nor do I expect you to, either. I'm happy with normal, heartfelt gifts. I don't want to feel as though my love is being bought."

"That is most interesting to hear. I will keep those things in mind. Well, look on the bright side. Now we are going in. We will finally be able to find those golf clubs for your father, as well as some nice things for you."

"Well then. Let the fun begin."

Author's Notes: Ahhhh! I'm so sorry, but this chapter got so long! As a result, I know this is only part one, but two is close behind, I promise! I'll give you a hint of what is to come: it involves red speedos, tee hee hee. Also, any more verses that should be added to the poem? Snuggling time with a certain male might be involved. And who can say no to that? More to come! Thanks for all the reviews so far! I'll be replying to them all really, really soon. Shout outs to Seyfert, Nicole, and Miss Selah! Enjoy! -tmwillson3


	5. Chapter 5: Why Men NEVER Wear Speedos

Author's Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own anything, not Labyrinth, nor any such thing as a bright red speedo. With that in mind, let's go back to the story! It's time to see what kinds of mischief Jareth and the goblins will have inside the mall! Perhaps it is time to see someone get bogged properly, don't you think? I hope you like it! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Baby, It's Cold Outside

Chapter 4 Part 2: Why Men Should NOT Wear Speedos-Santa Baby

Inside the mall, the term "mad house" did not begin to scratch the surface of just how crazy it was inside.

What Jareth would give to simply be back in his castle. There would certainly be less noise, even if the goblins were hyped up on sugar and drunk on ale, which was saying something. The music blared, people screamed and spoke loudly to others as they wandered throughout the mall, while children cried and screamed for many different reasons.

Then there were the people. At least the goblins didn't try to pretend to be smart. Or seem that important and busy that they had to push everyone aside in order to get there first and get what they wanted, ignoring all and sundry in order to satisfy their needs. What jerks they were, how he desired to bog them all!

But he couldn't. Drat it all and listening to Sarah. But he had to, if he wished to stay on her good side. As long as no one tried to insult him or Sarah again. The last guy that had insulted her had been that close to being sent to bog, until she stopped him. At least now the guy was getting his just desserts. He had gone over to the toy section, and, as it so happened, between the goblins and children all trying to get toys, somehow the loser had managed to get trampled by a bunch of children, after being pushed, then tripping, and finally, falling on his butt and not being able to get up since so many children were running him over. Ah, sweet revenge.

Meanwhile, Sarah also saw the guy, and felt a little bad for him. He probably deserved some of it, but not all of it. Then, she saw a coat outlet store trying to sell merchandise, and one of the things being sold was a sable outdoor coat, going for only $50. When Jareth heard it, he looked at her, smiled, and then yelled out, "Sold! I'll take the sable coat!" Afterward, he said to Sarah, "Well, you did need a new coat. And, nothing is better than sable, correct? Especially when it's slipped under the tree, right?" He winked at her then, handed over the cash to the clerk, took the coat, and put it on Sarah.

Naturally, Sarah was very pleased by this, and she felt much warmer. What she was worried by was how he managed to remember the words from the song. Hopefully he did not intend to get all of those things for her. It didn't help matters any when they came upon an hourly drawing at a car dealer, and this hour, they were giving away a blue Mustang convertible. Sarah looked quite excited looking at it, while Jareth entered them both in. Ten minutes later, the drawing occurred, and somehow, Jareth won. Sarah found this a little hard to believe, but she forgave him the moment he got a hold of the keys, and then he handed them to Sarah.

His reason for doing such a thing was that, as he said, "Well, I certainly don't need Aboveground transportation, but you do. And, you did say you'd like this kind of car. I think it works quite well for both us. You do want it, right?"

"Of course I do! I'd be a fool not to. I don't quite understand how you managed to do this, but thank you, so much. But don't feel as though you have to give me all these gifts, especially just the ones that I mentioned in the song. As I said earlier, my love and feelings cannot be bought. Ok?"

"Of course. But, if they are around, it would be rude of me not to give when it is in my power."

"You've given me so much already. There is no need. Now, let's go find some golf clubs."

"I couldn't agree more."

And so, the fearless duo made their way through the store, admiring the general chaos caused by goblins as they ran amok in the mall. Chocolate fountains now had broken, shooting out their contents everywhere, but somehow disappearing before it hit the ground, while the kiddy horse rides were also hyped up on too much power and energy supplied, galloping in place and throwing off any kids that tried to get on. Finally, they made it into the sporting goods store.

As luck would have it, there was a drawing going on there too, and this time, it was for a yacht. Naturally, Jareth entered them both in it, and it was as they were walking away that the drawing occurred, and as luck would have it, Sarah won! She was quite overjoyed, as she had never been lucky before, and this was just turning into a really great and lucky day for her. She accepted it gracefully, and then they made their way over to the golf clubs. After finding the desired one, strangely left there despite numerous people walking up to it, grabbing it, and then being shocked as they grabbed it, the club was perfect. It was as they were walking toward the register that another man stood in front of Sarah, and physically tried to take the club out of her hands. Naturally, as he gained more of it, Jareth stepped in front of Sarah, forcing the man to back off.

"Stay away from the lady, and no one gets hurt."

"What are you going to do, glitter boy? Scare me by reflecting light off your perfectly manicured body and outfit?"

"If you know what is good for you, you will walk away right now, and never look back. I am not afraid of making you feel pain of the very worst sort."

"And what's that? That you broke a nail?"

"One more insult about my manliness, and I will embarrass you and make you feel greater pain than you ever have before. Step away from Sarah and I."

"What right has she to that club? It's spooked. I tried to grab it three times, and I could not pick it up. Yet, somehow, not only does she win a yacht, but the club allows her to pick it up."

"You make it sound as though the club is a living thing, choosing its master."

"Nonsense, nothing of the sort. It's just plain weird how she managed to do it."

"Just because you are a sore loser, who can't stand losing to a girl, who probably has more brains and friends than you, does not give you permission to steal something from her. Get your own, and walk away now, silly, insignificant person."

"You sound like you own the place, or at least or better than us mere mortals."

"Well, it's the truth. I am."

"Well, while you may be, Mister High and Mighty Pretty Boy, the fact remains that your girl there, is not. In fact, she is nothing of the sort. She is the ugliest, worst excuse for a woman who is so dumb that she manages to win, and she deserves-"

"Nothing but the best. Good bye, ignorant fool. Never, ever, mess with the Goblin King. Oh the goblins shall have such fun playing golf with him, using him as a club to hit rocks inside the bog. Nothing of the sort, tra la la. I showed you."

He looked quite pleased with himself, while Sarah was bursting at the seams. First, the jerk tried to take her stuff, then insult Jareth, then her. The nerve! The problem was, she had moved too slow and realized too late that insulting her was a surefire way to get bogged that she should have remembered from last time. And her record of almost bogs had been so good, too. Six for her, none for him. Now, he won once, and she lost. Drat it all. Good thing no one seemed to realize that the man had disappeared rather suddenly. Well, at least now they could move on.

And with that, they went and paid. There was really nothing else she could do now, except move on and hope nothing else of that kind happened.

Thankfully, the books were more quiet. After browsing a while, Sarah found what she was looking for, while goblins looked at picture books and tried to convince Jareth to read them a story. He refused outright. Sarah ended up reading one instead, before going up to pay for her stuff. She had begun to wonder what had happened to Jareth when he suddenly appeared next, with a book in hand.

"I wish to buy this book."

"Great. Stay next to me, it will be fine."

"Ok." And so they paid, and then he gave her the book. It was titled "The Many Uses of Platinum". What made Jareth chuckle most as she opened it was when the front page included a copy of a document giving the ownership of a platinum mine over to the person who owned the book, until she went to the next page and saw that it was next to impossible to do, so expect no such thing to ever appear, except in her dreams. She simply gave him an exasperated look and led him out of the store toward the clothing.

Luckily for her, clothing shopping was more fun. She knew what she was looking for, explaining why she wore certain clothes, such as many pants and not skirts and fine dresses, as she ought to. She had grabbed a fair amount to try on, when suddenly, Jareth asked a question.

"Sarah, why are the women's undergarments so small and yet so colorful?"

"What?" She was greatly confused, until she saw where he was pointing, and realized that he was looking at bikinis and bathing suits. She sighed loudly, glad she did not have to explain bras or thongs. Until she saw Jareth walk over to a bright red speedo, pick it up gingerly, and try to give it to her.

"Sarah, why on earth would you wear only this? It seems indecent, even by my standards. Where is the top?"

"That is because there is not top, and it is not meant for me at all. It is meant for you, or any man to wear. Personally, I don't see a point to wear it since its only true usage is to serve to show off men's anatomy at the beach. No thank you, I don't want that much information."

"Even about me?" The wicked look on his face told the whole story, as he lightly twirled it about his index finger while looking at her suggestively. She simply chose to give him a dirty look of "Don't even think about going any further in that territory" and stomped her foot, putting her foot down. No way was she was letting him wear that, and then be forced to look at him in it. Pure torture. Plain and simple.

"Jareth, this is a store. You can try on whatever you like, except that speedo. Do I make myself clear? We will take turns showing off for one another, and it will be fun."

"I look forward to seeing what you try on, Sarah. Truly."

And so after giving Jareth time to browse, he had some stuff, and they went to try the stuff on. Each had their wow moments, Sarah's coming in the middle as she tried on an off-the-shoulder evening gown of red satin that showed a bit of skin, where Jareth simply stood, slack-jawed and looking quite happy, as though he had gone to heaven. Jareth's moment came at the end as he said, "Precious, I think you are going to like this last one. A lot."

Sarah came out, and what she saw left her dizzy. There stood Jareth in all his almost naked glory, with a chiseled, well-build chest and abs, finely-toned arms and legs, and nothing on but a bright red speedo. It really wasn't fair. And she wasn't the only one suffering from the shock of it. Several women fainted upon seeing him, another gasped and fanned herself muttering something about "Gotta get me one of those", while other women openly ogled him and gave catcalls.

Sarah felt a little embarrassed, not to mention a great deal of heat come to her cheeks as Jareth looked winningly at her, grinned, and then blew her a kiss. Then, he had the nerve to walk toward her, ask if she liked it, and then kissed her on the lips, in public! It was enough to make her want to jump him, part of her wanting to hug the life out of him, while the other part wanted to strangle him for disobeying her. He was just too wonderful to look at! So pronounced was the suit as it fit tightly around him, as so many pants did. Sarah did her best not to imagine potatoes and how they would add to the picture in front of her. It just wasn't fair to see such a thing, and not be allowed to see him strut around in it properly to allow the suit to fulfill its purpose completely. How on earth to get back at him, that was the question.

But, first of all, best to get a clear mind in order to plot properly. "Jareth, take that thing off immediately. Did you not hear me earlier when I said you could not try that on?"

"But, Sarah dearest, you didn't specify not this one. Besides, the other one was too small for me."

Sarah did her best not to imagine the speedo any smaller or tighter. Drat her colorful imagination.

"I don't care if you got around what I said, just get out of it, now. I am very upset with you."

"Why? I thought you liked it."

She sighed, then turned around and went into her stall. Several moments later, several women walked by, all giving their names and addresses should she decide she no longer wanted him. That didn't help any, and she was tempted to bog those three women on the spot too for even thinking that they had a chance while she was around. She cursed herself inwardly as she added three wins to Jareth's side for almost bogging, and then began to change into her normal clothes. She was just about finished when another knock came on the door, and Sarah, thinking it another woman, refused to open.

"What do you want?" It was said a little more harshly than she liked.

"Sarah, are you alright?" It was only Jareth. Let him wait. "Sarah, if you aren't done, would you do me a huge favor, and try this for me please? I'd really appreciate it if you did."

She was ready to throw the dress back in his face when she got a good look at it. It was a dress, but not just any dress. It was a seamless silk dress of shimmery emerald green to match her eyes, and it was just low enough and fitted perfectly to hug her curves well. She felt like a queen just admiring it, with its long, flowing sleeves, train, and many ruffles. Before she knew it, she was trying it on, and showing it to Jareth. Never had she seen such a pleased and proud look on his face before, as he admired her. At least he did, until one guy made the mistake of whistling at her and trying to grab her hand before he disappeared suddenly. Drat it, another tally for his side. Six for her, five for him. She was losing her touch. At least he liked it.

"Jareth, what is it? Where did you get it from? I don't remember this, and this has to be way too expensive to buy. Tell me."

"It's yours, Sarah. If you look, you'll notice there is no price tag, because it was made and designed by me, especially for you. I was hoping you would keep it and wear it on our date next week when you come to visit the castle."

Wait. What? When had dating and his castle come into the picture? "And you were planning on telling me _when_ about this date to the castle again?"

"I couldn't think of a good way to bring it up, so I thought I'd try this. It seems it worked. So, next Friday, I will come pick you up at your house, and then take you to my castle for an evening. I promise I won't force you to stay, this time. Sound good to you?"

"I suppose…."

"Great. I'm looking forward to it very much. I'm going to give you a tour of the castle, and you are going to love it, I'm sure. Well, now that we have gone through all the clothes, shall we go pay for everything?"

"Ah, sure. Why not? Just let me change. I don't want to get it dirty."

"And I don't want any other men ogling you or whistling at you," he said rather warily as he looked around.

Sarah was very pleased by this addition of his, so she changed quickly, and then, they paid. After the clerk refused to allow the sale prices to stand, Sarah just barely saved the woman from being bogged when another man came behind Sarah, trying to whisper in her ear when suddenly, she heard a growl, followed by a cut off scream, and next thing she knew, there was no longer a man beside her. She kept thinking, "Drat it, Jareth, stop bogging anyone that comes near me!" But it still felt nice to be so wanted, and so she forgave him. Sarah, seven; Jareth six.

After that, they flew back to her home, where he gave her a box containing the dress, and then wished her sweet dreams, since he saw clearly that she was tired.

"I look forward eagerly to seeing you in a week. I hope you will dream sweet dreams, so that you will be well-rested for when I see you next week. Good day, my dear."

"Good bye, Jareth. Thank you for being with me and making shopping more fun and interesting. I really appreciate it."

"And I appreciate you giving me another chance, Precious. Good bye."

And with that, he changed into an owl and flew off. Meanwhile, Sarah went to bed, dreaming sweet dreams of going on a date with the Goblin King.

Author's Notes: Such imagery! Consider it the beginning of my (belated) Christmas present to you I can't tell you how excited I am over the response I have had thus far, and I can't thank you enough! I am so thankful for all of you this Christmas! Sadly, due to time constraints coming home for the holidays and falling asleep early, I could not finish the story today, but with any luck, it will be done by the New Year. I will be doing more updating as soon as I can. Thanks for all the reviews (next chapters will have everyone mentioned), and I love you all!


	6. Ch 6: First Date: I Saw Mommy Kiss SC

Author's Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own anything, including Labyrinth. Jareth keeps refusing to grant my wish that it be so. Warning! This is a pure fluff chapter! In honor of Christmas, I give you, a very fluffy chapter of Sarah and Jareth time, so don't expect anything major to happen, other than the plot to continue on. Naturally, they must go on a date, and this will give Sarah much to consider as to whether or not she likes him or not, as well deciding on how he feels about her. Enjoy!

Baby, It's Cold Outside

Chapter 5: The First Date- I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus

After a week of non-stop work getting ready for Christmas, Sarah was worn out and quite excited to go on a date with Jareth. It would be nice to relax, and no doubt he would make it very enjoyable. She only worried about how her emotions would hold up to being around him so much.

Then there was the question of what exactly their relationship was at that moment. Complicated at best. Not together, but definitely not apart. At least she already had the outfit picked out for her. Better yet, around five o'clock, three female goblins suddenly appeared at her closet door, and they explained that they had been sent by Jareth in order to fix her hair to whatever she wanted done. They were the best the castle offered, as they were the ones who gave Jareth haircuts and new hairstyles (as odd as it sounded to Sarah's ears). No matter, if they wanted to help since Jareth was so thoughtful, the least she could do was use them.

And use them she did. Soon, she had her long brown hair in cascading braids, with a face well-powdered and done. By seven o'clock, the goblins disappeared, with many wishes for a good evening with the "king king". Not long after, Sarah heard knocking at her apartment door, and she grabbed her things.

"Hello, Sarah. You look breathtaking tonight. I'm so glad we are going to the castle. I hope the goblins were helpful and to your standards?"

"Oh yes! They were very nice, and so handy with my hair. I only wish I knew what I wanted, so that they were not switching the style every twenty minutes. But they were very fast, and they did not mind at all. But why did they address me as "Great Lady"?

"Well, you see, as my _partner,_ it is a given that you will be treated with much respect. However, as Champion of the Labyrinth, you are accorded an even higher degree of respect. You need not worry, as all goblins will address you as such when you are Underground. Are you ready for a magical evening?"

"I am. It will be such a nice change from the normal routine. Thank you."

"You are most welcome. Now, let us go to the castle. Hold on tight, Precious One."

"Why do you call me that?"

"Because, you are very important and special to me, in so many ways."

"I shouldn't be. I beat and destroyed your Labyrinth. I made a mockery of you and your words and was ungrateful."

"But you sound remorseful, and I am very willing to forgive. And, I believe in second chances. I do hope you do, too." And with that, he whisked the two of them off to the castle.

The first order of the evening was dinner, and it was a very talkative affair. Placed at a small table inside a very large, colorful, and citrusy greenhouse, Sarah had thought she would sweat to no end and feel quite claustrophobic, but in truth she couldn't remember a nicer time. It smelled so good, and she felt as though she were in an exotic jungle, especially as Jareth walked about inside, picking out flowers for their vase and for her to take with her. The conversation was easy, as he was curious about how she came to work for a newspaper, and she wanted to know about her friends, the goblins, and what he did on a regular basis.

When that was done, he gave her a grand tour of the inside of the castle, showing the many kings before him, as well as his family from the portrait gallery, besides all of the other interesting rooms. The Escher Room was glossed over, as it was currently under construction to be fixed, at which Sarah felt a twinge of guilt, but she was soon won over by the large library Jareth kept on hand. Never before had she seen so many books, except at the Library of Congress. After that, they went up to the top of the castle to the tallest turret, and looked out at the great scene around them. Rarely had Sarah seen such beauty as the sun set in the distance. It didn't help any that he had his arms around her, snuggling her close to him, whispering sweetly in her ear.

"Well, Sarah, do you like it?"

"Like it? I love it! I've never experience such overwhelming beauty and harmony in one place before, even with the Labyrinth right there. The kingdom is so massive, so much to see."

"And it's all yours."

"We can explore it all? All of it? No forbidden forests?"

"Not here, when I'm beside you. You have access to it all, and your magic will help. Consider the castle your new home."

"I, well, I….."

"But I know that you have loose ends to take care of Aboveground, so of course you need to go back for now. But, is there anything else you'd like to see tonight?"

"Yes, I'd like to see that orchard over there," she said, pointing at it. Even in the distance, she could see large patches of pink sprouting in long lines.

"Of course. Would you like to take the long, scenic way, or the short way?"

"Long way, of course."

"Excellent. Then let us go to the stables." In a moment, as she looked up, he was kissing her, holding her closer than he ever had before. For several moments, she thought that she would die from lack of oxygen from kissing Jareth too much. But all too soon, he let go of her, quite reluctantly, to show her the horse she would be riding.

"This is Titania. She is a very old horse, with very picky tastes in who rides her. Let us see if she will let you."

As Sarah reached out to pet Titania, Titania made a noise and nudged Sarah's hand, before licking it.

"Huh. Lucky you, Sarah. It seems she likes you, odd since she does not like me. This is good. Well, let's get you up. Just be careful, she can be playful. And she likes to run quite fast. Try not to wish for help too often." The smirk was hard to miss.

Soon, they were both riding through the kingdom. Sarah on her black, sleek beauty, joined with Jareth and his horse, a silver-white creature with flowing silk mane in the wind, as Sarah's did as well, made a pretty picture, one even more so for Jareth as he watched her smile with joy as she flew through the air atop Titania.

After an exhilarating ride, they were in the orchard. It wasn't until they were walking toward the first tree that Sarah realized that it was a peach orchard. It smelled great, looked even prettier, but the idea of being near peaches, after all those years, especially with Jareth, was almost too much. The memories hurt because of her irrational fear, and so she immediately turned and latched onto Jareth.

"Not here. Not now. Please, let's go. I can't take it."

"Are you sure, Sarah? I promise, no one is trying to poison you; that is not my intention. It won't hurt to go near them. They are my favorite fruit; I'm quite fond of them. Do you trust me?"

"Yes," she said quietly.

"Then please, allow me to show them to you, that they won't hurt you. You don't have to eat one, but at least, let me show you the pride of my land. I don't let the goblins go anywhere near here. This is my own special place, because of my love for them."

She could believe it. Ignoring that they were all peaches, or would be soon since they were all blossoming currently, it was a very quiet, pleasant place. One of sweet smell, and even more color when the sun was setting. She could grow to like it, she thought. Just this once.

"Alright, I will give it a chance. And you. Don't make me regret it."

"Never, Precious. Now, come with me."

It was a silent walk at first through the orchard, but Sarah liked it. Then, Jareth told her of how his family had been growing them for generations, how no one was allowed in the royal orchards. And then he told her about his family, of growing up, and how he grew to love this special place. All too soon, they were at the beginning, and so they had to leave. But as they left, Sarah mentioned the idea of coming back to visit again soon, which made Jareth happy.

Once they were back at the castle, Sarah became a little quiet.

"What's wrong, Sarah?"

"I know this is going to sound weird, but I miss the cold and snow from home."

After receiving a relieved, then exasperated, look from Jareth, he shook his head and threw up a crystal. As Sarah looked up at it, she saw the crystal shatter mid-air, into many very tiny pieces, many falling on top of her. It wasn't until she felt one touch her nose that she realized that it had become snow and was now blanketing the area around them. She was most pleased. She wasted no time in making snow angels on the ground, meanwhile making fun of Jareth for refusing to get wet in the snow.

After a little taunting, Jareth finally did so, but soon Sarah got up and began throwing snowballs at his head. He was not altogether pleased being in the predicament of not knowing how to make snowballs and be defenseless on the ground, so he soon got up, avoiding snowballs where he could, until he reached Sarah. She gave him an impish grin and said, "Is something wrong, Jareth?"

"Oh yes, there is something wrong. Here I come and grant your wish for snow, and what do you do to repay me? Throw it in my face. I think some retribution is in order. Hold still Sarah, I'm going to enjoy this."

The grin on his face covered his whole face, reminding Sarah of a Chesire cat. At least until he leaned in, and slowly, ever so carefully, he brought his face to meet hers. She was ready for him this time, and she even closed her eyes.

And that was when she felt something very cold and wet hit her hair and go down her back underneath her clothes.

Drat him.

"Much better. Truce, Sarah?"

Now he wants a truce….

"Sure, probably better that way, since you know how to use your magic more than me. In honor of the truce, let's make a snowman, and then I'll go home. Sound good?"

"I'd actually like to learn how to make those little snow ball things first, if you don't mind. Then the snowman. Going Aboveground is optional-"

"But necessary. Here, this is how you shape it, and then you just throw it. Now you try it. Good. Now, you are ready for the family games at Christmas. Now, to make a snowman, you just start with a ball, and keep rolling it in the snow until you get a really large ball, and then you make two more, each of slightly smaller size each time. Then we decorate. It is very important to decorate well, as the best shaped and decorated one wins the competition every year. Ok?"

"Got it. Let's make this snowman, and then go inside, where it is warm."

"Wimp."

"Never. Just….. sensitive."

Hardly. The only thing that might be sensitive in that entire winter outfit he was wearing was, well…. Never mind, she was not going to go there.

And so the work began. It was slow at first showing Jareth how to shape and pat snow, but he soon got the hang of it. Soon, even the goblins were allowed to come outside and join them. They kept further away, as they liked the idea of snow warfare, even using catapults for larger balls, and had they ruined any part of the snowman, they would have been bogged on the spot.

In the end, they had a very manly snowman, complete with fedora hat and crystal ball in one outstretched hand. Jareth had argued against the hat in favor of giving the snowman some hair, but Sarah convinced him that the hair would melt and ruin easily, not to mention that in her family, all snowmen wore hats. It was a requirement.

"Stupid rule, if you ask me."

"Be nice, Jareth. It's my family rules, not yours. Make your own traditions if you want that."

"Oh I will, very soon in the future if I get my way." The look he sent her way was full of meaning, and Sarah turned away in order to ignore hide her blush.

"Well, now that that is done, shall I get moving so that you can get your kingdom in order and not have it eternally be sunset?"

"Nonsense. Sunset is a good time to be outside. As for ruling, we could do it together, you know. And we could just head inside to warm up for a little while too. Use that body heat to good effect, hmm?" As he said that, he sidled up to her, easily putting his arm around her. "It sure is cold outside, after all."

"No. Good try, but no. But, you can have one more kiss before I go, but that is all."

"I'll take what I can get."

And take he did. Most thoroughly. She didn't stand a chance against him. She let herself get lost in it, finally enjoying a date as she had always wanted. It wasn't until his hands wrapped around her, and he attempted to pick her up, that she finally pulled away, which was no easy task. It helped that some of the goblins were looking on with awe, and so the only thing that went through her mind then was the song "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus". Not that Jareth would look good in red, nor a red jumpsuit. Even worse idea. It was to try to get away now.

"Jareth…."

"Just a little longer, Precious One."

And so she gave it to him, not like she had a choice. Not the way he kissed and took control. She had never enjoyed giving the power to Jareth so much.

And it was after hearing those thoughts go through her mind that she got scared. She stiffened for a moment, pushed the thoughts aside to examine at home, and then gave him one last responding kiss before pulling away.

"It's time for me to go home….."

"You'll have to do it yourself. I want five more minutes."

"I can't."

"Yes, you can. You have the magic, you just have to try. Go ahead, wish and try with all your might. You have the stubbornness and defiance to do it now without any training." A big grin filled his face.

"How dare you-"

But he was kissing her again, as he was all for encouraging her, and before she knew it, she felt no wind hitting her, though Jareth was still kissing her. That was when he pulled away in amazement.

"Well, well. You were able to do it. I'm glad I was able to assist you in encouraging you to try to use your magic. Feel free to practice more while I'm gone. I look forward to seeing you again in two weeks, when I come back to spend the next week with you for Christmas with the family again, big games and all. Good night, Sarah. I hope you had a wonderful evening as I did."

And kissing her hand, he poofed away back to his castle.

Sarah didn't know whether to be glad he was gone, or try to make herself go back Underground in order to spend more time with him. Not something she wanted to contemplate right now. And so she went to bed, in order to dream even happier dreams about the night she just had. He definitely topped her list of best dates ever had.

Author's Notes: Whew! So much fluff! I do love writing fluff. Consider it another belated gift. The next one will be shorter I think, so that we can get into the more interesting stuff, the family games. More explanations next chapter. I hope you enjoyed it!

Reviews! So nice of you all to write reviews! I can't tell you how much I love seeing your responses and seeing that you love it! More updates soon! Here are my responses:

Seyfert: Wow! Two reviews! Thanks so much! I'm so glad to hear you like it You have read so much; I am so fortunate to have people like you being willing to read everything that I put up in spurts. I couldn't agree more, the goblins are most definitely to blame for all shopping madness ;)

Nicole: Thanks for the two reviews! I promise I am trying to write as much as possible as fast as I can before classes begin again. It is really hard to write once schoolwork takes over. I want it done soon, so hopefully the updates will be more regular. I'm excited that you love the story so much! I love Jareth too, and part of me wanted to see more bogging, but it wasn't needed all that much I think.

Miss Selah: One update, coming right up! I'm happy to hear that you like it And more to come soon. Be on the lookout. Thanks for the review!

Kaytori: I always imagined Jareth a little more playful than dark myself, I'm glad to hear you approve. Sure, he can be a little demanding sometimes, but what girl doesn't want what he is trying to give? I hope your expectations are met for the rest of the story! Thanks for the review!

xxShortyyCakexx: Aww, thanks! I like to do cute, hopefully this chapter will create new meaning for the word cuteness. There will definitely be a few more chapters coming your way, so never fear! There will be closure, whether or not Sarah is prepared for it. Thanks for the review!

Carabear96: Yes, potatoes! One needs one or two potato references to make it a true story about Jareth, in my humble opinion Yay! I'm glad you love the story! Yes, there is definitely more coming your way in the near future, and be prepared for more potatoes references! Thanks so much for the review!

Jazlynn Dark: Wonderful! What joy it gives me to see others like you really get into it! It is a new idea of mine, as I really like playing with the idea of Christmas music to help tell the story, not to mention have a get together over the holidays. I'm a sucker for such things myself, and I felt inspired after reading one story by Celecia Leigh for the holidays. She has some interesting ones too. Thanks for the review!


	7. Chapter 7: Definitely Not in Denial

Author's Disclaimer: I do not own Labyrinth or any of its characters, as much as I wish I did. Another chapter, and more stuff happening! It seems Sarah is having issues trying to decide how she feels about Jareth. It's a little empty of Jareth in person, though he certainly is at the center of this chapter in all hearts and minds. I am trying to write shorter chapters, in an effort to get to the good stuff. Hopefully the experiment is worth it. I hope you like it!

Chapter 6: Definitely Not in Denial-Do You Hear What I Hear

The next two weeks of Sarah's life were really, really long. Not to mention outright frustrating. The day after the date, Jareth sent her flowers, including peach blossoms. The note with the card mentioned that he had enjoyed the date a great deal and looked forward to seeing her soon.

Sarah took the message to mean that Jareth was coming soon, which made her glad. She owed him a few snow balls. She was not too keen on having the peach blossoms in the house, even if they did smell good. She found herself waiting and pacing around her apartment the rest of the day trying to decide what to do with the blossoms, if she should keep them for the smell and be nice to Jareth, or get rid of them since she did not like them and did not want them to be forced on her, even by him.

After a day of indecision, she kept them when Toby visited and said that he liked them a lot, since they reminded him of Sarah, for being so bright, pretty, and good smelling. It is hard to say no to flattery like that after all.

However, after another two days and Jareth did not show, she was beginning to get worried about not seeing him or that he had forgotten her. Then she thought of him kissing her on the date, and she realized that was probably next to impossible for him, just as it was for her. But it was then that the thought of control and power also came to light.

Being able to give him some control over her scared her. But, she wanted to trust him. She could not do both, so she was stuck battling with herself, trying to see which side would win. Maybe he would come and help settle it, and ten minutes later, she was considering throwing out the flowers and hoping he would not come. She was a wreck. The only reason she was sane for the first couple days was because she kept herself busy by wrapping all the Christmas gifts for family early. But that only lasted for about two days, what with all the shopping and wrapping she had to do.

Now what would she do?

Luckily for her, she received another package from Jareth. This time, she read the message first, and discovered that there were some minor fights breaking out amongst the goblins, so he would probably be handling that until the time of the family party. He expressed his deepest apologies for not visiting, and wished heartily that he could be there with her instead. As a result, he had sent her a gift, that of a blank check. It was no ordinary check, though. This was a magical check for his time, allowing her to pick one occasion in which he would do whatever she asked him to do with her, so long as they spent time together.

Part of her said "Awww, that is so cute. He wants to spend time with me."

Another part of her said, "Oh goodness. Who does he think he is? He really thinks I am going to use it? It is an IOU because he can't come see me now. Not happening."

And the last, playful part of her saw it, and thought, "Oh boy. Think of all the embarrassing and silly things I could make him do in front of the family just because. Instant blackmail, but in a different way. I like it!"

Eventually, the third part of her won, so she put the gift into her purse for a special occasion, and she went to work on some articles about the holidays.

However, writing the articles did not take him off her mind, and she was still thinking of how she was going to be able to trust him. She was afraid of him trying to take and do too much and take over her life. She wanted to be in charge, not him. How could that work? "Love me, fear me, and I will be your slave"? It made no sense, even now. He loved her then, and now he was giving her another chance after she refused him outright. Why couldn't she do the same?

Because it was Jareth. Scheming, playful, arrogant, romantic, assuming, frustrating, and such a great kisser, not to mention very attractive. She was doomed.

After several more days of indecision, she was coming down to the wire. There were only a few days left before she would have to go to her parents' home in order to prepare for the annual Williams Family Christmas Games. She would be needed to help make room, cook, wrap presents for her parents, and play with Toby whenever he asked. Not that she minded those things, but that was when she would see Jareth, and she wanted to have her act together, and not be confused and distracted around Jareth. _That _she would not allow.

She had to be ready to help Jareth navigate the games, what with movie-watching, tree-cutting, tree decorating, cookie making, and the epic family snowball fight they had coming up in the near future. It would be a crazy and very fun time, assuming she and Jareth didn't fight. That and the goblins didn't try anything too terrible again. So much depended on her staying undistracted. The fact that she was not sleeping well at night was not helping matters any either. She was restless, and one night, she could have sworn she heard Jareth singing a lullaby to her. Now she was imagining him. Was she really that bad and in need of him?

Obviously, yes. Eventually, she was going to have to admit it. But just not yet. Not until she thought that he had feelings for her.

Still, she was imagining him. The Christmas music she had been listening to earlier that day came back in even greater resonance as she heard the song saying to her "Do you hear what I hear?"

"Yes, I hear it. Now I want it to be true."

Several days later, she arrived at her family home, ready to try something with Jareth should he want to. She would even embrace him, should he ever arrive. Hopefully she would not regret it.

Author's Notes: Yay! A short chapter, for me at least. Hopefully this has filled in a few cracks where Sarah has been thinking. It might seem a tiny bit angsty, but that is mostly because there is no Jareth around to make her happy. I'm trying to tell a little about the games, but not too much since I'll have lots of detail as they play. I hope you like it!

Reviews! Many thanks for all the reviews!

Epic Failing Again: Oh, but aren't they? I love fluff so much for that reason. I'm glad you think it's cute too! Thanks for the review!


	8. Chapter 8: Let the Games Begin

Author's Notes: I do not own Labyrinth, or any of the characters. I simply play with them in ways that I think they would act in character, but in slightly different situations. Such as large family parties. In this chapter, we welcome back Jareth, as well as the rest of the family, as we see Jareth's competitive tendencies come alive. Hopefully, there will be a little goblin action too. Enjoy!

Chapter 7: Let the Games Begin-Deck the Halls

Sarah was helping Toby make the last bed in the house when the doorbell rang. Karen immediately shouted, "Sarah, he's for you!"

Sarah tried not to "hmmpph" too much upon hearing that proclamation, and then the butterflies kicked in as she ran to the door. It was time to see how he felt about her.

And it was a resounding yes.

When Sarah opened the door, there stood Jareth, in his human clothes and tight leather pants, smiling warmly. He opened his arms and then kissed and hugged her until she could no longer breathe. He wanted her.

"I've missed you so much, Precious."

Yep, that was what she needed to hear. "I've missed you too, Jareth. I thought you would never come. One time it was so bad, I imagined you were singing to me."

He held her close. "You never know, Sarah. Perhaps I was close-by. Perhaps you weren't imagining it."

"Well, are you two coming in or not? It's cold outside!" Toby's question broke through their moment.

Jareth only grinned. "He is quite right, Sarah. It is very cold outside. Let's come in, though I'm afraid you are going to have to help me bring in the gifts. It is a rather large sack, I'm afraid."

That was when Sarah saw the bright red burlap sack behind Jareth, and Toby screamed, "Oh boy! Presents! Are they for me?"

"Some are, Toby. But you have to wait until Christmas, like for all your other presents."

"Oh man. Alright cool. Bring them in here, over to the side. Eventually, they will go under the tree, once we have one."

"Where is it Toby? Why haven't you bought it yet?"

"Oh, we don't buy trees in our family, Jareth, we cut them ourselves. Don't worry, you'll be introduced to it soon. It's lots of fun. Hee hee."

Sarah then added, "Yes, I was going to explain it to you once you arrived. I would have done it sooner, had you visited. But, I'll tell you now while we wait for everyone else to arrive."

And so, Sarah proceeded to explain the annual Christmas Games to Jareth. It all began when one family member saw the movie "National Lampoons Christmas Vacation". It immediately became a family favorite once shown to everyone else. However, one year, Sarah's uncle had not bought the usual tree needed, so he went out to their backyard and went searching for a good tree to use, in true movie fashion. However, the one he chose was not seen as the best to be found, or so one of his brothers said, so that one went out and found one as well. From there, they began taking other members to join them in decorating their tree so that it was the best. It only took a little thinking on the part of the parents to see that this could turn into something great, and so the Annual Christmas Games were born, with new events coming every year.

And so, when the family arrived, there were many greetings and food was eaten, followed by the separating into teams. Once established, with Jareth and Sarah on the same team, the trash talk began as they got ready for the first event, watching the movie and being able to quote the movie. In some families, they quote _Monty Python and the Holy Grail_, but in this one, it was _Christmas Vacation_. Jareth sat next to Sarah, and so the games began. Sarah's grandparents were in charge, stopping the movie at various times and calling out to the two teams to say the next line.

"You see, what you don't realize is that much of what happens in this movie will soon be done by you, so it is in your best interest to see what and how they do each activity, as well as what not to do. We do a wide variety here. Try not to go overboard, ok?" said Sarah.

"Of course, Sarah. You can trust me."

"And no goblins helping you either, unlike in that football game last Thanksgiving. And no magic."

"But then how can I have fun?"

"You do it fair and square, like every other mortal. Besides, it more fun when there isn't one person winning every time. There will be plenty of opportunities to cheat, as you will soon discover. We've got a big family, and we have no shame when in the heat of battle."

"Great. Then we will get along really well."

Once the movie was over, each team got bundled up, and then they went outside to cut down a tree. Once outside in the forest, the two teams split up, and since Jareth was new, he was allowed to help carry the tree once it was cut down. Sadly, Jareth was not prepared for all the needles and snow that brushed him as he carried it, so he was continually using his free hand to move the long, unwieldy branches away from his face, which was tickling him.

"Sarah, stop throwing snow at me. I'm on your team. Or else I am going to have to plot some sort of revenge on you for this."

"Don't look at me. You forget that those branches have snow on them, and that as long as those branches are allowed to hit other trees along the way, more snow is going to hit you, so get used it."

Jareth continued to grumble, and he only grumbled more as he was told to pick up the pace. The winner of the decorating competition had to do it in the least time, with the most color and decorations. Extra points were awarded for ingenuity in using items given to the teams by the judges, where each team received the same ones.

That year, the interesting items of choice were a striped blue and yellow sock, a mouse ornament, a plunger ornament, and some popcorn. Sarah was soon put onto the part of the team devoted to creating a scenario for combining the items, while Jareth put on decorating duty since he was tall. He still had to use a ladder to get to the top to put on the angel, but his height certainly helped since the tree was more populated at the top for once.

However, being Jareth, he soon had ideas in order to turn the whole tree into a glittery work of art. He soon confiscated all of the tinsel and tree glitter, saying that no tree was complete without it, and then he began to color coordinate the tree. At the top, where the white angel was, the tree was surrounded by white ornaments, and going down and around the tree, there was yellow, two shades of orange and red each, three shades of green, two shades of blue, and one shade of purple.

Once all the color ornaments were added, Jareth added in two strings of white lights, crisscrossing one another around the tree, and then Sarah added in the objects of choice. The theme this year would be: The Angel of Oz, where the mouse was Dorothy, following the yellow popcorn road, on the way to see the great angel of wisdom and Christmas. In the process of taking the path, Dorothy overcame great hardships such as fighting the evil plunger of doom and destroying the mouse trap of destruction. Finally, much glitter and tinsel was added, to give the finishing touches. Few could ever recall such a sparkly tree before.

Sarah was not altogether surprised when her team finished first. At least twice she had heard cries of "Ah! Where did it go?" come from the other team, and while she had not heard or seen the goblins, she could still feel their presence nearby, which made her wonder. What was also suspicious was how Jareth kept being given more ornaments by her family, and how when one item was asked for, it was always found, even if no one could recall ever seeing anything like it before. One such item was a crystal bubble ornament Sarah swore she never saw nor would allow in her home, and yet, there it was on her tree. When the other team finally finished, the judging happened, and of course, Sarah's team won by a land slide. Literally. For, just as the judging started for the other tree, the ground in the house shook slightly, and then the entire tree and ornaments came falling to the ground.

Needless to say, Sarah gave Jareth the silent treatment until the tree was picked up by him in order to help.

And the other team's tree had not been creative with the items either. All they had done was the theme of "How the Mouse Stole Christmas" with a bag of goodies, including all the items, in a sleigh at the top of the tree, followed by many white ornaments to look like snow.

Once that was done, the house decorating contest, the last one of the night, began. This one was modeled after the fine job done in completely overpowering the outside of the house with light and decorations. In their games, each side got a half of the house, roof, house sides, and surrounding yard to decorate with outside lights, as well as the corresponding parts indoors.

"Now Jareth, do try to not let the other side lose all their lights or hammers or nails, ok?"

"What? You think I would do such a thing?"

"Yes. You or the goblins. Got it?"

"Fine, fine. I will do my best not to interfere."  
>"You aren't supposed to at all."<p>

"And? Your family did."  
>"They are mortal. You are not. Get used to it."<p>

"Oh have a little Christmas cheer and spirit. That is not the way it is done. It must be the best!"

"No, you are supposed to spend time with the ones you love and get to know them more and have fun."

"Boring."

"Ugh. It's hopeless."

"Quite right. Wish me luck Sarah; I'm going to make that outside brighter than my hair with highlights."

"Oh. Dear. Me."

"Thanks, Precious, you are so encouraging," Jareth said, rolling his eyes. "You better give me a kiss for luck."

"Just one." Sarah was trying hard to smile too much as Jareth took the lights in his hand and threw them around Sarah, in effect lassoing Sarah and brought her toward him, before he kissed her. Once he stopped, Sarah tried to move away, but was soon stopped by her family members when they all mentioned how there was mistletoe above her and that she needed to be kissed again. Needless to say, Jareth was only too happy to oblige the meddling family as they watched happily.

"When did that mistletoe get there? Decorating hasn't started yet."

"Perhaps you should believe more in Christmas magic."

"Christmas magic, my foot. More like Jareth magic needing an excuse to kiss me again."

"A man knows what he wants. I just want you."

They stood there for several moments, staring at one another, and no doubt they would have continued, except Toby came by and made fun of them for wasting time (he was on the other team naturally), so they stopped and began work.

Jareth remained outside the whole time, while Sarah switched off between the outdoors and indoors. Outside, Sarah's uncle had big plans for decorating the roof, so Jareth saw to the house sides to make them match the roof. They, each combined with another team member, took care of the house itself, while another four people covered the front and back yard with much decoration. Sarah helped on the ground, taking in leftover outdoor decorations to see if they could be used indoors, while another four people took to decorating the two floors left to decorate inside.

No corner was left bare, every hall was decked with holly, and the ceiling was completely covered in mistletoe somehow, much to Sarah's chagrin. There was a nativity scene by the tree, stockings hung with much care and creative flair, and presents overflowing underneath the tree. There were wreaths and lights scattered liberally throughout the home, and even more so outside. Sarah's uncle had outdone himself again, managing to create an entire sleigh with reindeer and plenty of light around those figures. Jareth, too, outdid himself, managing to somehow find red and white strings of lights and combining them so that it switched between the two, and went around each window with it to create a fine peppermint or candy cane look. The ground was reminiscent of the North Pole, with elves and polar creatures everywhere, replete with a pole and sign declaring its existence.

The other side had done an equally good job, stealing all the icicle and moving lights and coordinating them so that they all fell in time down the house, as though snow was falling. Meanwhile, the roof had Santa on it, waving out to the snow scene of figures lit up on the ground.

Sarah was pleased to see everyone work together so well, but she was not happy when some of the lights refused to turn on for the other team, or that Santa kept falling over, almost off the roof, not to mention the large amount of times that the figures on the ground fell over. And, people, as they were carrying items, would magically slip on the ground, falling on their butts into the snow. Sarah glared at Jareth a great deal then, but Jareth carefully ignored her looks.

When both teams finished, it was declared a tie, for much had been done on both, with bright, overpowering lights on Jareth's side, and carefully falling light on the other. Once that was done, everyone celebrated with hot cocoa, before going to bed. The first day of the games was done at last, only five more to go before Christmas Eve.

Jareth was very pleased with himself, while Sarah glared at him, until he kissed her good night under the mistletoe. She was pleased that he hadn't gotten too upset with anyone, and even though she was being forced to kiss him so much from omnipresent mistletoe, she was still enjoying the moments a great deal. It was nice to do such normal activities with him, share Christmas, and kiss him a great deal, something that should never be underestimated. Overall, it had been a good day, and Sarah was very excited to see what mischief would occur the next day.

Author's Notes: Whew! So much decorating. It makes me exhausted just writing about all that work! Jareth is up to his old tricks, and much more awaits as more days pass. The question is: how will Sarah respond? Will she join the shenanigans, or be mad at Jareth? Only time will tell. I hope you liked it!

Thanks for all the reviews!


	9. Chapter 9: Snow  Let It Snow

Author's Disclaimer: As usual, I do not own Labyrinth, as much as I continue to wish otherwise. It seems Sarah is the only one who gets all of her wishes granted, for better or worse. And right now, she is doing a lot of wishing, as ensconced as she is in the games with Jareth. But the question remains, how much Jareth can Sarah handle, and how much is she willing to trust him? Oh the burning questions, soon to be discovered and answered. Happy reading!

Baby It's Cold Outside

Chapter 8: Snow - Let it Snow

The following morning brought more good news to the Williams family: it had snowed again last night, with at least six more inches. Now, the games could go into full-blown proportion. The next five days would be packed with activities: first Christmas caroling around the neighborhood, which would involve learning many songs and creating dance routines to go with the carols, and Christmas cookie making to give to each home that they visited. The next day would begin the snow games, starting with the ever classic snow bowl and ice hockey showdown. The next day, after much bruising, would be the hill day, where sledding and skiing were in store, showing off all the best stunts known or stupid enough to try. Then, the snow and ice sculpting would occur the next day, creating whatever they wanted throughout the yard, all in preparation for the big finale of the week: The Ultimate Snow Ball Fight, giving bragging privileges of all sorts to the winning team and MVP of that team. Later that night, they would have a bout of karaoke so that the losing team of the fight could sing "Beautiful Loser" and then have a competition for most interesting song, voted by the audience by making the most noise. On Christmas Eve, the results of the overall winner was announced, and then Secret Santa and gag gifts were decided upon before the great event of opening all the family presents at 7:00, after a fine meal.

Needless to say, Sarah was vastly interested to see how Jareth would react to the family antics.

"Tell me again Sarah: why must we make cookies? Isn't it enough that we must stand in the cold and amuse them all by singing these songs?" said Jareth rather exasperatedly.

"We are not amusing them; we are interrupting their family activities to show off how well we sing, so naturally, we must compensate them somehow."

"This seems a bit much if you ask me."

"You aren't the one forced to leave the fireplace to stand outside. Would you be willing to open the door to carolers?"

"If you were included, most definitely. In fact, I might even invite you all in, so that I could help warm you up after being outside for so long," said Jareth gleefully.

Sarah simply shook her head and went back to trying mix the cookie dough in the bowl. She was not allowed to decorate, as it was discovered early on that her inability to cook extended to food decorating as well. She was rather glad, as she had not the patience to do it.

Meanwhile, Jareth thought it best to ignore the goblins' desire to visit, until Sarah noticed their pleading faces, and she let them in. Jareth looked appropriately horror-stricken.

"Sarah, you do realize what kind of disaster you are allowing into your home, correct? And that all this sugar is going to make them wreak havoc on your furniture?"

"Yes, yes, I am very familiar. Don't worry about me or the home."

"Suit yourself. Remember, you have only yourself to blame for damage, and for allowing them to be a part of the games from now on, and they will obey me."

Sarah regarded Jareth carefully. "They will obey me, since they love me more."

"They fear me more, especially the bog. Fear trumps love; I win."

"Hardly. Love conquers all, remember?"

"We will see about that. Excuse me, but I have to learn twenty new carols and corresponding dance moves in a matter of hours. Best of luck trying to cook."

Sarah was not altogether pleased by the last part of his statement, so she ignored it for now. And then she went back to stirring. However, she soon saw the goblins begin their path of destruction, starting in the kitchen. Cookie dough was magically disappearing, and it took all of Sarah's wheedling to convince them to put it back, so that by the end of the day, only four bowls of cookie dough were lost mysteriously. Once the goblins got one bowl, they were more than enough hyper to begin checking out preparations in other parts of the house, including the other kitchen downstairs being used by the other team, where cookie making supplies became invisible, including copious amounts of frosting and green sprinkles. Then, the rooms began being rearranged. Sarah just could not understand why her sofa had been moved to the opposite side of the room, in front of the front door, until she saw everything in the opposite place of where it should be.

That required several pleading looks and bribes of fresh cookies to convince the goblins to go back to the original position of the furniture.

Then, in the practicing rooms, anything that could go wrong did. The lights went out, the power was lost for the keyboard, items magically appeared in people's way, making them trip a great deal and almost have several sprained ankles. Then, there were prop and clothing malfunctions as each team tried to dance, where hats would fly away and canes would slip out of people's hands, while snow boots disappeared and light-up costumes vanished. Naturally, Jareth had no such problems, giving the occasional "Be nice or enjoy the bog" look to them all.

Sarah eventually brought out a cookie for Jareth to try, who decided it would be a good idea to accept it under mistletoe, trying to grab the cookie from Sarah's mouth instead, to liven things up a bit. Sarah was fine with it until Jareth made a funny look after taking the first bite, and then added how she would not have to cook when she was Underground. Sarah thought this a little preposterous, and was a little hurt by his words, so she went back to the kitchen to stir more and stay away from the man in tight pants who was strutting around in red leather from head to toe and was wearing a Santa hat. At the appropriate time, Sarah and Jareth switched places, so that she could learn new dance moves, and Jareth helped decorate cookies.

Sarah soon saw that the moves were similar to last year, making it easier to remember them all, and she was pleasantly surprised when later Jareth came by with a hug and kiss and gave her a cookie he had made himself, with a small red and green heart in the middle.

However, they could not stay indoors all day, and so after much clean up and dinner, the caroling began. Large, heavy coats were brought out, and various props were put into bags to carry, along with the cookies. The first house was their next door neighbor, who was by now very expectant of the family to come and visit this time of the year. Each performed, and the neighbor chose who was better between the two. After the first three houses, Jareth began standing next to Sarah always, complaining of being cold, though the way he was glued to her side, somehow she was not entirely convinced of that.

By the end of the night, Sarah's team won once again, as Jareth outdid himself in the performing department in general, what with his fine voice and strutting abilities. Sarah was only picked up once by Jareth when her team sang Santa Baby, though all the women were picked up by one of the men at least. She gave him a warning glare to make sure his hands did not wander while she was in the air.

By the time they all got home, only a few cookies were left, so they were soon disposed of. They would have had hot chocolate with them, except they could not find any in the shelves anymore. That was when Sarah saw the goblins juggling gifts by the tree and decided it was best that they go home as they had way too much sugar already. They were sad to go but excited to come back the next day for more "sugar snacks" and "colorful food in a jar". Sarah was exhausted and let Jareth hold her close as he stretched out from a long day of dancing and strutting.

The next day was even more exhausting, and more violent.

How to describe the way Jareth fumbled about as he tried to run in snow was priceless. If flat ground was conducive to being graceful, soft snow was conducive to being clumsy, and Jareth was well aware of it before too long. He had quite enjoyed football before, but this was ridiculous. It was too easy to slide in the snow, not to mention he had no traction, so he was useless in defense and offense. Some of the others had grown up around it, but he had not. It was time to level out the playing field, as only he knew how: goblins.

Needless to say, it only took one summons to encourage the goblins to help out as they had last time, and help they did.

No one was entirely sure how snowballs came from the direction of the trees or straight up from the ground as they hit random people on the leg or stomach. Women being hit screamed in fear, and men protected themselves from any unseemly attacks of the worst kind. It was a veritable mine field, and Sarah was giving Jareth the evil eye, though he chose to ignore her.

Those attacks did not stop until the very end, when Jareth managed to pick up a fumble, and got whacked solidly in the face by a snowball. Sarah immediately knew where the poor goblin had been, as the others nearby quickly ran away in order to escape the punishment for the one.

And hockey was no better.

Jareth knew nothing about ice skating, so he enjoyed about twenty minutes of skating arm-in-arm with Sarah, but he certainly did not like the idea of skating alone or playing a game, so, he waited to play until it was necessary. That time came, and sure enough, after one fall on his rear, Jareth was grumbling, and Sarah thought that she saw shadows on the ice, only to start laughing when the shadows accidentally went the wrong way because of how slippery the ice was.

How Sarah's uncle and father ended up entangled on the ice, soon pulling Jareth down since he volunteered to help (being the gracious guy that he was), was a mystery to all, but it added to the laughs. Jareth was muttering under his breath about doing something right. Sarah chose to ignore him as she helped her father and uncle up.

"Sarah, aren't you going to help me?" The question was innocent enough.

"No. You got yourself into this situation, and you can get yourself out of it, too. Just try and see." The look she gave him was definitely not innocent.

"Fine, I will." And he got up, and began skating around in circles, much to Sarah's chagrin. That he went around her making a heart design only added to her discomfort as others realized what he was doing. This got many cheers, and she was blushing a great deal.

"Well, are you going to respond to my invitation, Precious? Or just stand there?"

"I will just stand here, thank you." The folding of her arms said volumes, and when she continued there for several more minutes, Jareth went off in a huff. This was only the beginning of the tension created in the game, as Jareth continued to encourage the goblins to throw small sticks and snowballs at the puck in order to send it off course.

But, by far the worst happened that sent Sarah over the edge, literally, was at the end of the game, as she noticed several goblins by her team's goal. She was a little concerned, so she went over there, and good thing she did, for the other team suddenly got the puck and headed with speed over to her since they were down by a point.

Sarah was skating to block the puck, when suddenly; she felt the ice give out underneath her, as a circle of ice definitely loosened gave way. Her head was still above the water when the puck came, so she stopped it from going in with her forehead, before she plummeted into the water.

Jareth was screaming to her, but she was refusing his help. How dare he let them do this? Someone could have been seriously hurt, thankfully it was only her, as she was young and could rebound and had powers, but how would her parents have fared? She shuddered to think, so instead, she embraced the cold for a few moments until she was ready to swim to the top, but not before another hole was made, and Jareth jumped in after her, grabbing her and then carrying her back to her home, thankfully not far away. The game was ended, and everyone saw to their wounds or watched Sarah recover.

That Sarah was still not talking to Jareth by the end of that day rather distressed Jareth. He hadn't meant for the goblins to do that much damage, only make it harder to make a goal. And he certainly hadn't expected anyone to guard it. He had said he was sorry multiple times, but she ignored him every time, except when in front of the family, and then she just narrowed her eyes, opened her mouth, closed it, and then turned away. She was in a sour mood all day, and he could not figure out how to win her over.

When it was bed time, she was able to move and walk, but she was still a little chilled, so she had more blankets. Jareth offered himself, but she said no and refused to kiss him.

"No, I can't forgive you for that, Jareth. You could have hurt my family, in a very serious way. Please leave me alone for now."

She was barely in her bed, however, before she felt much colder, and shivered involuntarily. Suddenly, Jareth was in her room. He wrapped his arms around her, and he forced her to lie down.

"Go to sleep, Sarah. I don't care if you hate me, but I will not let your stubbornness make you even worse and sicker. I am staying here until you stop shivering; I caused it and will stop it. Now, sleep well, Precious."

Sarah wanted to argue with him, but he was right. She didn't want to be worse for the games, and he had a great deal of magic to help keep her warm in a way blankets never could. Not to mention all the wonderful body heat there was, but Sarah was pretty good at ignoring that for once. In fact, she felt so cold and numb that she didn't mind contorting her body to suit her, but forcing him to be most uncomfortable. She really didn't care right then; she was just too cold and tired. And so she slept, quite peacefully for once.

The next day brought a much-rested and warmer Sarah into being, while Jareth still looked as stunning as always. He ignored her, letting her have her space, since it seemed she was still not ready to forgive and forget.

Since Sarah and Jareth were not sledding together, and Jareth knew nothing about skiing, the day was a bad day for Sarah and her team. She refused to talk to him or show him anything, letting the family do it for once. And without them working together to make up some good stunts, the team suffered, which only angered Sarah more. Perhaps the only good part of the day was when Jareth tried a stunt at the very end after the official games were over, at which point he jumped in small trick sled and went off a ramp and landed in front of Sarah, with flowers in hand. Physics declared it could not happen, and the fact that he never tried anything like it while in the games was not lost on Sarah either. So she smiled, took the flowers, and thanked him, before going away. It didn't mean she forgave him, but it was a start.

Jareth was not needed to keep Sarah warm, much to Jareth's displeasure. But, when she awoke, he was rewarded with a smile, and she told him that he was lucky it was Christmas, and that he had no real control over the goblins. He thought he was cleared, not realizing that Sarah was only giving him a conditional pardon. Some fault had to be attributed to him, and she was worried he would try more, but she didn't feel right doing it at Christmas, so she would give him another chance.

The snow and ice sculpting were fun, as Jareth finally got to make two snowmen, one the family way and one with hair, and he even managed a special mention for his hairy, life-size one that looked much like him. Sarah only giggled as she watched him sculpt such a masterpiece and add various pieces to make it more realistic.

And then the Ultimate Snow Ball Fight began. Always a favorite activity for all, as sweet revenge could be exacted on anyone, even the same team if one wanted to out of some past grievance. The key was honesty, as everyone was expected to scream out whenever they were hit on the body. And in the end, whichever team had less snowball hits won. Special awards went to the people who got the most and least amount of snowballs lobbed at them/got hit by.

It was at this event that the goblins were specifically not allowed to come to, upon threat of bogging by Jareth. Now that he knew how to throw snowballs, he wanted to win all on his own for once, not to mention, not give Sarah a reason to dislike him more. Giving the goblins a reason to throw snowballs at one another was a _terrible _idea, as he soon found out. It was such a bad idea that it had taken him at least three days to stop all the snowball fights going on throughout the Goblin Kingdom, and then several more days to stop the riots that resulted from being forced to stop. Never again.

Jareth was not altogether surprised when Sarah went in a different direction than him. No doubt that she would miss him and his protection after too long after he proved himself a good ally. So, he set about making snowballs, and then he began juggling them as he ran along, preying on the opposite team and stalking them as a predator would his food. He immediately got two people, and then began getting others as the other team retaliated for such quick hits so soon.

The fact that he had ventured into enemy territory so soon had rather surprised the other team, but soon they had enough going that Jareth had to go back in order to prevent being hit. It was as he made his third batch of snowballs, facing enemy territory, that he suddenly got hit for the first time in the back of the head.

"Ow! What in the name of all that is silly in the Goblin Kingdom was that? That couldn't have been a snowball, was it?" But, upon further inspection, there was indeed snow there, so naturally, the question at hand was "Well, who is going to claim responsibility for it? Anyone? Or do I have to hit you all for refusing to tell me the culprit? There will be justice!"

And so began the sudden outpouring of snow into enemy territory, resulting in several "Eee!", "Oye!", and "Yowser!"'s to be exclaimed, and yet no one claimed responsibility, so naturally, he continued.

He did not pause until he heard footsteps, and turning around, he beheld Sarah. Sarah was no longer the dainty snow princess who made snow angels and snowmen; she was now the snow warrior, with ski mask and thick coat and gloves to protect her from all harm, if the handful of three snowballs and plastic shopping bag full of snowballs was not enough to scare away all who went near her. The evil smirk across her face only added to the palpable fear that she pretended to be. Obviously, she had not been hit yet.

"Well, Jareth, are you ready to have a little fun the old-fashioned way? I think it's time we invaded the fort, and go for the bigger kill."

"What do you mean by bigger kill?"

"Well, there are still several people you have not hit, most of which are the little cousins and more quick uncles. They have excellent spies to keep people like us out. Those in front will get hit and sacrifice themselves to keep the others in back free, until it is time for the big invasion and they come into our area. But, I'd like it to stay over there for once. Are you with me?"

"Always, Precious One. Now, explain the best way to get in first."

"Well, we will start with a little sneak. We will use the fortifications built off to the side there to escape immediate hits. Once there, we will get in and give a little scare. Once they are sufficiently scattered, I will make a signal to make the rest of the team follow behind us and help us take them all down." 

"Isn't that suicide for us? This is based on time, and there is still much time left."

"Actually, there isn't. To sneak properly and not get caught, it takes a good hour of waiting for opportunity. After that, we have about fifteen minutes to get in and call for reinforcements before the other team attempts to attack us. They always wait until there is fifteen minutes left in the game before attacking so they keep chasing us. Their strategy is simple: strength in large numbers to scare faster."

"Lovely. Well then, let us begin. Are you sure you would not rather use a little magic?"

"And cheat? No way. No fun then. They will know we are coming this way, and fear us more as we attack. But, you must be ready to dodge and duck at a moment's notice, because they come fast, often in chunks at one person. They figure at least one will hit you then. Ready?"

"Oh yes, lead on, fearless leader." He liked this side of Sarah that could plot battles so well. He definitely needed her by his side to rule properly.

And so the Great Sneak Offensive began. Running from tree to tree had its dangers, and both were hit in the process, but only three at most hit each of them, not bad compared to years past. When they finally reached their destination at the fortifications, Sarah began drawing in the snow as Jareth made snow balls. Combining their talents as such was very beneficial, as Sarah discovered. She was slow at making, but good at throwing and knew all the strategy needed to defeat the other team. Jareth was a loaded cannon, ready to fire at a moment's notice. He especially did not take well to people trying to hit him or Sarah, much to Sarah's delight. His quick responses hit many more than the others hit him when trying to surprise him.

After that, the scattering began. Running side by side, they ran into tree-laden enemy territory and began throwing at will at whatever moved. Once Sarah deemed the scatter big enough, she made a bird noise and all the rest of their team descended like goblins upon cookies, taking many prisoners and leaving nothing behind. Even though it was a half hour of intense fighting inside enemy territory, much was accomplished, with minor hits taken by all, and the other team sustained heavy losses.

By the time it was over, Sarah and Jareth's team won handily. Everyone on the other team each had at least ten hits to show for, while Jareth had only seven, and Sarah six. Overall, Sarah had the least hits, thanks in part to Jareth and his quick arm. The one with most hits was a particularly tall cousin of Sarah's who stayed out front throughout, taking twenty-four hits for the team.

However, Jareth was still curious. "Well, who hit me, especially at the beginning?"

Slowly, the other team laid claims to who had gotten him. However, the most important first hit, was never claimed. "Are you sure you didn't hit me before that? Did anyone go into my territory for a better shot at me?"

All shook their heads, and Jareth was at a loss, until he happened to look around and saw Sarah grinning from ear to ear. That was not encouraging.

But, it was finally time to go inside, warm up, and get ready for dinner. So, Jareth approached Sarah as they went in. "Well, Sarah, did you do it?"

Her answer was unabashed. "Yes, I did, Jareth. And enjoyed every second of it."

"But I'm on your team, and you have no reason to hit me at all."

"You lying sack of potatoes! Of course I did! Why do you think I haven't been on speaking terms with you for the longest time? Because I felt like it? Certainly not."

"You aren't still smarting over that wound, are you Sarah? When are you going to let it go? I thought you forgave me."

"I did, but it doesn't mean I forgot what you tried to allow on my family. It may be fun and games for you and the goblins, but we are mortal. We can get hurt, and you need to remember that. This is not a silly game that you can manipulate at will. I will not let you hurt them. Better me than them."

"Sarah…"

"Manipulating will never win you the game, no matter what. And if the stakes are higher, that is all the more reason to not try. Was it not better that we teamed up, than for you to do it all on your own for once? Look at all we accomplished. We did great things. You have to remember that I can make my own decisions. Sometimes they will benefit you, other times they won't. And you can't be upset when it doesn't favor you every time. Life isn't always fair, after all."

"Well, is there anything else you'd like to share? Besides to back off since you claim I have no power over you? It isn't true anymore, Sarah. You've got to admit it by now."

"I don't have to admit anything."

"And you are being cruel, Sarah, but I can be cruel back. Don't make me prove it."

"Have fun trying."

"Gladly."

Both left in a huff, angry at themselves and the other. Sarah was upset for refusing to trust him and at him for blowing off safety and her right to decide, while Jareth was upset with himself for not trying to make things better with Sarah. He had control too, not just her. She needed to see and understand that they belonged together, despite what she may think otherwise. And it would be so much fun to prove that night at karaoke.

Author's Notes: Well, that had much action and color. It's getting close to the end, as it's almost Christmas Eve, so all must resolve for the proper Christmas celebration. This has been so much fun to write! And it helps that I have wonderful people like you who love reading so much and reviewing! Many thanks to all who have taken the time to read; I greatly appreciate the encouragement. To all who have commented, you have made my day that much brighter!

Blueyzangel: Awww thanks! Two! I love hearing that so much! Reading your first comment made me smile; the second made me giggle. Well, this chapter does not help Jareth in his courtship too much, but do you think that will stop him from trying? He is a very persistent guy in all that he does after all, so look forward to a little closure. More is definitely on the way, lol

Nicole: No need to apologize at all, I completely understand that time and/or the internet are not on your side always, it seems to happen too often to me, too. Just keep blaming the computer, I find it to be the easiest way, lol. And really, Sarah and Jareth are so cute together; I couldn't agree more! Whether in an embrace or arguing, they just seem to belong together. Sarah is in so much trouble if she thinks that she can keep resisting like that. Jareth will do something about that, the lucky girl that she is. I'm jealous too, so I think it's quite ok to not feel bad at all as Sarah gets taken for a ride by Jareth. Good thing the goblins are around to keep Jareth in line and encourage Sarah. I hope the amount of mischief was satisfactory; they have this odd habit of appearing whether or not wanted by Sarah. Thanks so much for the two reviews, I really appreciate your continued positive feedback, as it gives me that much more of a reason to update (semi)regularly now.


	10. Chapter 10: Patience is a Virtue

Author's Disclaimer: No, I still do not own Labyrinth, or any of the characters, nor any of the songs mentioned. I simply do this for fun because I enjoy doing it from time to time. To all those who read thus far, thank you! Thank you for putting up with my tendencies to wait until work gets to be less. Sadly, being an engineer in college means that I have too much work sometimes, and my sleep life suffers way too often. But enough about me; back to the story! Sorry for the wait, it was a longer hiatus before the end, which is quite close I assure you. It is now Christmas Eve, and Sarah and Jareth need to finish what they started. Who will come out on top? Dear readers, please read on (because I love you all so much)!

Chapter 9: Patience is a Virtue: We Wish You a Merry Christmas

Sarah was not excited for that night. Not one bit.

She knew what to expect, at least so she thought. The family games would finally end, and all would unite for a great night of karaoke. The problem was that of Jareth. How was he going to be involved?

He was not a man prone to sitting back and letting things happen, and something was going to happen that night, she was sure of it. She could feel the romantic tension thicken in the room, especially after leaving him earlier that day. Jareth had _not _looked happy at all, and she was afraid of what he being cruel would involve. Somehow, she saw him taking advantage of the singing time to humiliate her.

On second thought, though, she immediately saw that it would not happen, since the whole point he was making was that he was important to her life, enough for them to be together. Well, she would be keeping tabs: reasons to stay away, and others to be with him. Certainly she had more than enough self-control to make an unbiased decision did she not? Let him prove himself.

And with that decision made, she walked out of her room, only to see Jareth looking quite predatory and smiling too widely as he leaned gracefully against the banister, waiting for her. Naturally, he would come to her, with his arm out.

She was ready to let him take her arm, when suddenly, his arm moved around her, along with his other one, to completely encompass her and then kiss her senseless for several blissful minutes. After getting her quite excited after an initial reluctance, Jareth pulled away, grinning. He then took her arm, and he led her downstairs to join her family. His only word: mistletoe.

Inwardly, Sarah groaned and added one tally to Jareth's side. Jareth one, Sarah none. No, it certainly was not love.

Upon getting into their seats next to one another, the couple began talking to the family about their predictions for the games. A little later, Jareth said, "Sarah, what is this talk of your family about spending tomorrow together as well? Are they not tired of one another?"

"No, certainly not, Jareth. We love each other a lot, and we love spending time together very much. Why? Do you have a problem spending one more day with them?" Was he crazy? Why would they not spend Christmas together? It was their favorite holiday after all. Jareth one, Sarah one.

"Well, in fae families, we normally do not spend this much together in one night, let alone a whole week. Normally, they have all disappeared themselves by now from all the screeching. Besides, I was hoping that after spending so much time with them, you would want to get away from them, and just spend some time together between the two of us. That way, you could see the goblins and your friends on Christmas, and we could enjoy ourselves. Doesn't that sound like fun?"

"And you are just assuming that I want to spend every last minute with you? Just because?"

"Yes, a little. It isn't too much to ask is it?"

"No, not when you ask. It is too much when you simply assume though. Keep that in mind. Here they come; be nice to them when we win, ok?"

"So confident are we?"

"Of course. A piece of cake."

"Some things will never change. The night has barely begun, dear Sarah."

Sarah did not like his sardonic grin one bit. This could only end badly. But she was not going to be afraid. Even if he did sidle up to her as close as humanly possible while still making it appear as though they still looked normal to the adults' eyes. He was good; there was no denying it. Jareth two; Sarah one.

To the adults' eyes, the young couple looked very snug and happy. Certainly they had had their tense moments earlier in the week, but who didn't? The point was that they were happy now. There were some who knew it was only a matter of time until something happened, because no matter how Sarah acted, she did smile more now, and Jareth looked every bit the lover who was ready to sweep her away given the chance. They just had no idea how soon and how easy it would be to do so.

The final announcements were made. It had been close for a while, but the snowball fight put Sarah and Jareth's team in first. It was also decided that Jareth was the team's most valuable player for being such a good sport. In Sarah's mind, this meant two things: Jareth three, Sarah one; second: it was a good thing they announced before singing, as he was about to make them all biased toward, or at least the women in any case.

Next came out the family karaoke machine, and after a rousing edition of "Beautiful Loser" from the other team, and "We Are the Champions" from their team, everyone was ready to let loose and enjoy themselves. Family favorites were had, while Jareth tried with all his might to convince her to do a duet with him, but to no avail. It wasn't long before Sarah's family got involved.

"Sarah, am I hearing you correctly, or do you not want to do a duet with Jareth?"

"You are right, auntie. You've never heard him sing by himself. Once you do, you'll never want me to sing again, as you'll be spoiled by him."

"I didn't know you felt like that, Sarah. I'm flattered, and very pleased. Thank you, really. If you are so worried, would you rather sing by yourself? I really love your voice."

Sarah had the grace to blush. "Certainly not. Far too scared. I don't even do it normally."

"Please, dearest?"

"No."

"What if I sing first? I will sing something silly, then we can do something together, and then by yourself. How about that?"

"That is a lovely idea, Jareth! Sarah, it's the perfect arrangement. He embarrasses himself first just to make you sound better. It doesn't get much better than that."

"Thank you , but no thank you."

"I won't take no for an answer, Sarah."

"You never have before now."

"Fine, I will sing next. I'll even let your family pick out the song."

There were several family members looking quite pleased, mostly men. "Come this way, Jareth. We had just the song in mind for you."

And so Jareth took the microphone, and then he saw the song name. Sarah did NOT like that look at all. What on earth had they chosen?

If Jareth kissing her in public was embarrassing, him singing to her was a hundred times more so. Especially when she realized that he was singing "Silly Love Songs" by Paul McCartney. She was trying to hide her face from him as he crooned 'I love you' multiple times, coming dangerously closer to her with every word until he was in front of her face. He was practically whispering softly in her ear now. And she wanted to give in so much too. After singing those parts to her, the parts about love not being silly now brought Jareth prancing across the living room and pretending to be a gallant knight with all the exaggerated motions of kneeling and giving his heart to her. It was truly a fine performance.

After that little stunt, he sat down next to her, kissed her, and managed to pull her to her feet before she realized what she had allowed. Soon, they were standing together, and she barely enough time to register that they were now about to sing "I've Had the Time of My Life" together. Good thing she knew the song, but she still unprepared for him to start singing and then proceed to pick her up in the air and start dancing with her in front of her family. After a minute of protesting, she finally gave in and let herself enjoy it. It was hard not to when they stared into one another's eyes as they sang and danced. And Jareth was happy.

After being swept off her feet, quite literally, Sarah was allowed to sit and ready herself to sing. Others sang and made fun of the songs, until it was her turn. Once again, the family chose the song, and so she found herself singing "Single Ladies". She enjoyed herself immensely, while Jareth glared at her and her cousins who chose the song. It wasn't until the end when she was next to him that he began to smile again.

"Never sing that song again if you know what's good for you, Sarah. I might be tempted to make it reality."

Sarah was a little shocked by this statement, and so she did what all girls do when they hear disagreeable things, pretend they didn't hear it and move on in the conversation.

"Well, that was fun. I can't wait to hear Toby sing. He has gotten quite good now."

"I'm sure he has. Nonetheless, what about tomorrow?"

"What about it?"

"You know very well. Will you join me, or not? We, or I, will be staying here tomorrow. It's the main event of the house, and you really expect me to miss it?"

"I'm not saying all of it, just some of it. Besides, if we really want more time, I can just rearrange-"

"Don't even think about it."

"No fun at all. Still, I really do love your family, but they are not the only important people in your life anymore. What about new traditions?"

"What's this about new traditions? Sarah, what are you arguing with Jareth about now?"

"Don't worry about it, Karen. We are handling it."

"It doesn't sound like it. Sounds like you are making all the rules. Maybe when you are younger you can do it, but not now, dear. You are a big girl now, in a real relationship. Now you have to work it out, and you have to be patient and give and take with one another. Now, what is this about new traditions?"

"Jareth wants-"

"I just wanted to spend a little alone time with Sarah tomorrow. I know it's her favorite day, and hence why I want to share it with her. However, we have some mutual friends whom she has not seen in quite some time, and they very much want to see her again. This way they can all see one another again."

"Well, if that is the case, why didn't you say so in the first place? Of course you should go Sarah! You can have breakfast with us, along with the presents, and then you can head over. We will survive without you for one year. Have fun with your friends. You know we love you."

"See, Sarah? Your family doesn't mind a bit. I promise you will enjoy yourself."

Sarah was a surprised at how it was all decided without her saying a word, but leave it to Jareth to find a way to do it. Naturally Karen would side with him. She would resign herself in time. At the present moment, she gave one last stony look before turning to talk to Toby.

Jareth was thrilled she was coming, but he wished she would show a little more enthusiasm. He didn't ask for much, just to spend some time with her. He wanted it to be special for her. He know how much it meant to her, and yet she refused to let him make a decision. He didn't want complete control, just enough. Which was more than she was prepared to give at present. He hoped she would come round soon.

At the end of the night, Toby won most interesting song for his rendition of "Nuttin for Christmas" in a high pitched girlie voice. Then, the gag gifts came. Sarah received a whoopee cushion, which she decided she would put under Jareth at some point, while Toby got magic coal that could crumble, enlarge, or turn into diamonds with the right amount of pressure added. Needless to say, Toby was highly amused. Her family just looked on with amazement.

"The limit was $5.00, Jareth."

"I know. But that was free." It was then that he sat down and discovered that someone had placed a whoopee cushion under him, so naturally he was surprised and then a little upset.

"What great trickster takes responsibility for such a monstrosity?"

"I do," said Sarah cheekily, "I knew you'd love it."

"Love it, more like loathe entirely. Do you know what happened when these things were discovered at home? I had no peace for a week."

Sarah imagined the kingdom overrun with whoopee cushions. For several moments, she pitied him. And then she went back to ignoring him.

But she couldn't ignore him for long, as the main gift giving was next, and Jareth had a present for her. His present to Toby was a set of his own crystals to learn to twirl, which worried Karen immensely. Naturally Sarah was concerned by the large package he gave her.

The first box revealed an emerald scarf with silver leaves and vines intertwining. The next box revealed a CD of Christmas songs that happened to be all her favorites. The final box was a much smaller box from Tiffany's, revealing a matching emerald necklace, bracelet, and earrings. Sarah acknowledged and hugged Jareth this time, though she felt horrible about the simple gift she got him. When he opened it, he actually danced a jig, before taking her in his arms and swinging her about.

"Thank you, Sarah, for the lovely gift. No one has ever given me such a thoughtful gift before. I will treasure it always. I just don't understand, how did you get these pictures?"

"Well, I took them, as did other family members for me this week. That way you can always remember our first Christmas and Christmas Games together."

"When did you make this book? You were with me so much."

"Well, I don't go to sleep always at first you know. You make time for the things that are important to you. Now, only because it's Christmas, I'm going to be nice to you, because that is what people do this time of the year. Remember that. Use it well."

"I will; I promise."

By the end of the night, Sarah had given up counting. Between him singing, dancing, and giving her gifts, there were far too many counts for him for it to matter. She really did need him in her life it seemed. She knew she cared for him, but how could she give of herself? She was too afraid. She was afraid of him taking over, and of being truly vulnerable. What would he do? He didn't need much encouragement to take up his plans. Would they be able to compromise?

These were the thoughts that haunted her as she helped clean up before bed. At midnight, Jareth led her away from the fire in the living room to the doorway where the mistletoe was. She knew this was coming, and so she might as well try. He had been so patient, she might as well give him what he wanted most for Christmas.

And so they shared their moment together. Jareth was rather surprised at her immediate willingness to kiss him, but ready to savor the special moment. It took all of his will power not kiss longer, more passionately, or to rearrange time to have more time with her, but he knew better. These moments counted most and would be what made the difference in their relationship.

Both were happy at the end of the kiss. Certainly, both wanted to go on longer, but it was perfect for the beginning of Christmas. After more hugs and kisses from the family, all went off to bed to be ready for the morning. Jareth gave her one last kiss before bed, which was more to both their liking.

Author's Notes: Well, another chapter at last. Sorry for the late timing of this. No more apologizing, I promise. The end is near, which is good since there is no more waiting. Thank you all for waiting!

Seyfert: Thank you! I'm glad I could make your day lighter! Hopefully you will like this singer Jareth too.

Blueyzangel: Sorry for the long wait. I hope it was worth it! Thank you for the review!

A Pirate By Any Other Name: Where do I begin? *Squeals of joy* Thank you for the compliment! You got the P&P reference, so glad. A fellow reader, it makes my heart sing happily. Your amusement and joy are so refreshing to me. Thank you for so many reviews; the red speedo will live on for all times.

Startraveller776: Thank you! It's later than I wanted, but better this way. Let me know if there is anything else I can do.


	11. Chapter 11: Baby, It's Cold Outside

Author's Disclaimer: I still do not own Labyrinth or any of its characters. Apparently the goblins can't take away copyrights. Can't say that I didn't try…. It's Christmas Day: Dun Dun Dun! All is a tizzy, as it is time for Sarah and Jareth to make their escape. The big question: what has Jareth planned? Thank you everyone for reading! I hope you love it!

Chapter 10: Baby It's Cold Outside

Waking up to a brisk morning, what was Sarah thinking? About Jareth? No. About the family? Wrong. About Christmas? Guess again. No, she was thinking about food. What kind of food? Naturally, peaches. Why on earth were peaches in her dreams?

She hadn't dreamt about peaches in years. Despised them until recently, and still only tolerated them. Certainly it was related to Jareth originally, but no relation to that glittery fae was ever made in the dream. Jareth would have been greatly upset had he ever heard about it, but thankfully, it was not to be, for the moment Sarah left her room, she found herself in front of Jareth, who had been pacing impatiently for her to wake up.

"Good morning, Sarah, and Merry Christmas. Did you sleep well?"

"I did, thank you. I trust your dreams were pleasant as always?"

"Naturally. But less about me. The family is busy getting ready. I hope you are ready too, for later."

"I am. Don't get over-excited. Still more to come today."

"I know. I am contemplating how much your family would like it if we started a food fight at breakfast together. Liven things up a bit."

"You wanna do that, you can just put on your full regalia and everyone will either think you nuts or else be complimenting you."

"A tempting prospect. However I will pass on such an offer. I'll see you soon."

And so, after a pleasant morning of church, a large family breakfast, and more gift-giving/commands to come back next year, Sarah and Jareth finally left.

"Well, Jareth. What have you planned for me, exactly?"

"I had a couple ideas in mind. I thought you might like some input since it is your day after all."

"Great. We are seeing the goblins, right? I have all the leftover Christmas cookies from Karen for them."

"Do you have a death wish? If not, don't bring those. They are hard enough without more sugar from you indulging them all the time."

"It's Christmas. You get me, I get what I want, and they get they want. See? Win-win for all involved. We won't be around them I think anyway."

"I do hope so. Otherwise I fear for your sanity. Anything else you want to do?" 

"Are we seeing my friends?"

"Yes, of course. After the goblins first. Anything else?"

"Just spending time with you I guess. And a really good dinner. You are going to have to beat Karen's cooking."

"Consider it done. Remember, I have magic. You would be amazed at what I can make appear when I want it to."

"I have no doubt."

Never had Sarah seen so many hyper goblins. Even after having only one bite of cookie. How much sugar _was _in those cookies exactly? Maybe that was why Toby loved them so much…..

But in any case, after placing the goblins outside in a miniature North Pole with chickens everywhere, Sarah and Jareth met with Hoggle, Sir Didymus, and Ludo, and a fun time was had by all. Sarah's last minute gifts were well-received, and Sarah was happy with the gifts she got. Then, they got to go for another ride around the grounds to build up a fine appetite.

Come dinnertime, Sarah was ready to eat anything. Thankfully, Jareth had thought ahead.

"Now Sarah, tell me exactly what you would like to have for dinner and dessert tonight. Anything. It can be traditional or not. Just describe it, and you will have it."

"I don't see how that is possible considering we just got back and while the table is out with a covered dish, I doubt you can read my mind unless it is only appetizers."

"Whatever it is you want; it is yours. Try me."

"Ok, don't say I didn't warn you….I wish to have the turkey I made at Thanksgiving that burned."

"Why?"

"Because I am curious how it would have turned out. And I want to prove that I am not the worst cook. And you would get to try something I made."

"Well, I did have some of your cookies."

"True, but that is different. I was only helping, not doing it all. This I spent many hours doing. Well, where is it?"

"Right here, dearest Sarah. As well as everything else had at that meal. As I recall, you rather love that food. That and the cookies, which I added." And so, lifting up the silver lid, there indeed was the bird, in all its smoky glory.

Sarah was naturally a little shocked, but very pleased, and she wasted no time in finding all of the good parts before Jareth joined in. And then they ate, and it was a very good meal overall. Few things could compare to the joy with which they ate and talked to one another. There was talk of goblins, of kingdoms, of jobs and apartments, of moving, hints at a future together, and much, much more.

At the end of the meal, Jareth asked Sarah if she would be willing to see a skit put on by the goblins.

"Of course! Anything they try I will be happy to watch."

"Are you sure, Sarah dearest? I'm afraid it is one of your favorite songs."

"Which one?"

"Santa Baby."

Sarah just burst out laughing at that point. The idea of the goblins singing and dancing to that song was utterly perfect and ridiculous.

"How on earth did they hear that song?"

"Well, they might have heard it in the store on Black Friday, and then I might have been whistling it once in a while in the castle, so they took a liking to it. A little too much in my mind. But I will let you decide. Come out and show us then."

And so, the goblins came out single file, dressed very stylishly for the season in red, white, and green. Some wore dresses, others pants, and still another, a Santa suit. And so the song began. There were the typical mimes of driving a car, pretending to be on a yacht, etc, but it was later in the song that Sarah laughed hard and long while Jareth looked exasperated with their antics. The main "girl", with bright yellow hair and fake boobs and a red dress kept twirling around the other "males", paying particular attention to Santa, and then singing the chorus with the other girls. Seeing the goblins shimmy and do the can-can was an event not to be missed by any means. The song ended with the girl and Santa walking out arm and arm, girl with ring, and Santa with cup of ale. And all was well with the world.

After clapping loudly and giving the goblins more gifts of cookies and Christmas hugs, Sarah and Jareth were alone again.

"Well, Sarah, have you room for anything else, or was that amazing turkey of yours able to fill you?"

"Well, I _suppose _I could something else, if convince if it was small."

"Good. Because I have one more surprise for you."

And so he disappeared for a moment, coming back with one more dish. Then, he opened it, showing two peaches.

"Now, Sarah, before you say no, please realize that I have had these particular peaches made specially for you. I know you don't care for them, as they represent all that trickery and manipulation can do, and so I made sure that you would not dream if you ate one. Never again would you have to fear that. If you really are willing to give me a second chance, please, just try it, this once. I very much wish you would. It would mean so much to me. Please. If not, I understand. I will find some other fruit that you like instead."

And so, for what seemed like hours, Jareth held out his hand with the forbidden peach in it. Sarah stared, tried to figure out what to do, and then began weighing her options. Gut instinct said no, but everything else screamed at her that she should take it if nothing else. At least then he would know that she trusted him, but just didn't like them. Why would these taste any better? Sour, nasty things.

Eventually, she reluctantly took it from his hand. He looked relieved, and then he took a bit of his before continuing to stare at her to see what she thought of it when she bit it. Sarah fought with herself again, but deep down, she knew she had to trust him. She did care for him, and it was quite evident that he cared for her. Even if he didn't, he wouldn't do it on Christmas. And so, she took the leap, or rather, bite.

She didn't taste anything at first, nor did she for a short bit, as Jareth then began to talk quite quickly as he got up from his chair and knelt beside her.

"Sarah, I know I have been misleading, confusing, cruel, pushy, and so much more. But, I didn't understand you or myself then. I didn't realize how much I missed you in my life until you were gone. You fought against me, insulted my labyrinth, gave me an adventure, and then, you helped me to understand what it meant to love. "

"I thought total obeying would be love, but you threw it back in my face. You said I had no power over you. And it was only after you left that I could see that naturally, young as you were, and given your situation, you most likely would not have accepted me, and that was all I allowed. I was sure that had you truly understood, you would have accepted me on the spot."

"But then, you waited, and waited even more. Years passed, and I didn't understand why. Surely by now, you knew what it meant to love, and how what I offered was more, the best. And yet, you never called. I was frustrated. For years, I stormed about, tried to blame you, but every time, I got back to myself, and I realized that I had no idea of what love was, as it usually meant that men were in charge. Because every time, I thought you said no because you thought you deserved more, more than I was willing to offer. And it was then that I realized that if I would ever have you, I would have to have to give you everything. Show you everything. Show you who I was, what I am prone to do in any situation, good and bad. Now I only needed a chance to show you."

"And then you gave it to me. All because of food. And I wasn't letting go of that chance for anything. And then I did show you everything. My hopes, my desires, to see you again, to spend time with you and get to know you and your family. I shared my labyrinth and all that I had with you. I showed you myself at my best, singing my heart out for you, and my worst, whether in getting shopping done or being competitive. And despite it all, you still were willing to give me another chance. I know I don't deserve so many, but I couldn't help but try, one last time."

And then he looked meaningfully at her and the peach. The wheels were turning in Sarah's head, and she was beginning to realize just how important that peach was.

Speaking of the peach, now most of it was gone, and she had actually liked it, it seemed. Listening to him and seeing him look at her like that sent her heart pounding in good ways, and somehow the peach disappeared in the meantime. But wait! Wasn't there supposed to be a pit? Why hadn't she found one yet?

Oh wait, there's something hard. But thin.

What on earth?

And then she looked down, and saw the sparkling emerald ring that shone brightly inside the peach, and she realized why the peach was necessary.

Oh dear. Did he really mean it?

And so Jareth started speaking again, this time, very slowly and meaningfully as he took her hand and the peach/ring.

"Sarah. I have asked for many second chances; I ask again, humble and grateful for all that you have shared with me. I know I have not proven myself the best at letting others decide, but I think that, if we work at it together, we could do it. And, your family does seem to like me, especially Toby. And I like them a lot, too. I would be content being able to spend every Christmas for the rest of my life with you and with your family, always doing those things that you love, and that I am slowly learning to love. I want to, very much. But would you like that? Would you be happy with me? Would you want that?"

After a short pause, he added, "What I mean simply is this: Sarah, I love you. I have loved you for some time now, and many years ago, I mentioned that all those things I did for you. But none of those matter now. The only thing I want to do for you now is to make you the happiest of all women. And I am willing to spend the rest of my life with you to prove it to you every day. Would you do me the honor and pleasure of becoming my wife and queen?"

He said it! Every little cog and wheel in Sarah's head was spinning wildly at what he had said. But, it all spun the same way, to create such a dazzling smile and blush on Sarah's face that when she did say "Yes, Jareth, that would make me very happy to be your wife," she barely had enough time to finish before he had enveloped her in his robes and began kissing her.

And such joyous moments they were.

If there was a contest for who could kiss the longest without going for air, they would win, no contest.

After that, Sarah immediately wanted to go and tell her friends and family. Her friends were very happy for them.

"Quickly, Jareth, we haven't much time before they leave!"

"Of course, dearest. Now, hold tight."

And soon, they were back at the home, Sarah running with all her might until she was just outside the doo, in front of everyone.

"Well, what is it, Sarah? What has happened? Why the need to run? You never liked to do it as I recall."

"I," huff, "have," wheeze, "the greatest," cough, "reason, " cough, "I promise."

"We're waitin-"

And that was when Karen saw the ring, and soon, she was running over to Sarah and squeezing out whatever air was left in Sarah until she was coughing yet more.

"Oh my gosh! This is so wonderful! Where is the lucky man? And why didn't we get to see it happen after all the hints he dropped?" she asked, as she put on a pretty pout at Jareth who happened to walk in at that moment.

"Well, I had no reason to hope she would answer yes, as she has been ignoring most of my hints of this past week, or so she made it seem. I didn't want to force her into saying yes if I did it here."

"I see. Well, it is a valid reason, but nonetheless, you will have to make up for it somehow."

"Well, I was just thinking about that. Seeing as I'd like us to have a normal engagement, I was thinking: how would you like it if we got married here at your home?"

"Oh! That is a wonderful idea! I love it! But when? Sarah, have you considered that yet?"

"Oh yes, I already know that. New Years Eve, next year. That way, everyone is still here, and Jareth will have one more competition single, and then we can start the new year together, as it should be. What do you think, Jareth?"

"I love it. Let's do it," he said, as he came behind her and hugged her gently, "I can't imagine it any other way."

"We are going to have so much to plan in the upcoming year."

"That is fine with me. More than enough time to get to know one another even more."

"Exactly. Now, let's go inside. As someone once said, 'Baby, it's cold outside!'"

Author's Notes: Ta-da! The end! Yay! But wait, I feel an epilogue coming on…

Once again, my MANY MANY thanks to everyone! You have made it worth it to write, not just for myself, but so that all can find more joy in their day, in the small ways. If this has brought a smile to your face, then I am happy. Thank you, thank you for your support and reviews!

Thegoblinqueen1998: Yay! Thanks! I'm so glad you loved it! Your wish is my command! Thanks for your review


	12. Chapter 12: Epilogue: All I Want

Author's Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own Labyrinth. I keep wishing, and still nothing happens. But, the story has come to its end at long last! It has been lovely writing again, and I look forward to doing more in the near future. But in the meantime, let us see what has become of Sarah and Jareth now that they are together, finally. Thanks for reading!

Chapter 11: Epilogue: All I Want for Christmas is You

Two Years Later: The Christmas Games

"Jareth! Get your glittery behind over here and help me make these cookies! And no, these ones are not for the goblins."

"Yes, yes, coming my queen. I really don't understand why you are the making all these. Don't you have cousins who can do this?"

"Yes, but I would rather do it myself. It gives me an excuse to get off my feet, something I don't do much anymore thanks to you."

"Well, at least I am concerned about the fact that you are due for our first children, twins no less, in less than two weeks. Are you not a little worried?"

"Of course I am. But you do such a good job of taking care of me that I don't do it as much. This way I can comfort you when you worry about me."

"I am very worried about you. I want an heir, but I want you more."

"I know. Don't worry."

Two years later, Sarah and Jareth were finally going to bring life into the world. After a long but necessary engagement to prepare Sarah's family for her going away and so that they could get to know Jareth more, the two were married at midnight of the new year. It was a beautiful event, with not a dry eye in the room, as everyone could see how happy the two were together. While Sarah stole the day with a very old, ornate gown Jareth had as an heirloom, Jareth certainly bedazzled all in the room with the amount glitter and sparkles on his attire, earning him the title of "Glitter Man" by all males in Sarah's family.

The Christmas Games had taken a slight hiatus in order to turn it into the Wedding Games, making who could make the house more beautiful and ready for the big event the lucky person who sat at the front. It had been a themed wedding, where Jareth and Sarah dressed like king and queen, with crowns and everything, while all in the bridal party were members of their court. Now, however, it was back to the usual games, though Toby tried, with much encouragement from Jareth, to make the crystal juggling a part of the games somehow. Sarah just stood by and laughed at both of them and how well they worked together.

After going Underground for most of the year to rule, making the occasional visit at home to show that they still lived nearby, Sarah was glad to come home now, partly because it was Christmas, and partly because she knew that she would have the children here with her family around her as she wanted. Jareth was only too happy to please the hormonal Sarah in her every want, including making absurd numbers of Christmas cookies to satisfy her cravings, and then giving the leftovers to the goblins, not something he liked doing, but it was necessary. Or else Sarah would find out.

Meanwhile, at the house, the games were in full swing, though Sarah stayed out of almost everything since she was so big and close to being due. Jareth tried to make up for her, but it was a sad attempt since he just wanted to spend every moment with her and watch over her. He had been with her every step of the way, through the morning sickness, the weird cravings, the hormones and mood swings, and the special moments, such as discovering she had twins, feeling their first kick, and singing to them together to make them smarter. The family was overjoyed at seeing Sarah again, especially after she announced she was pregnant. Karen was constantly calling and checking up on her, while Toby visited the castle to them both and tell the family how they were in their very large house "nearby".

It wasn't until Christmas Eve, though, that the real drama began. Early on, all were preparing, until Sarah made a strange grunting noise, and Jareth decided that it was time to take her to the hospital. All piled into cars, and the next ten hours were some of the most stressful ever known, especially for Jareth. He was not allowed inside until she was ready to deliver, and he was turning into a dark glittery blur as he paced the floor in his armor and shiny cloak that he wore to please Sarah.

But finally, he was allowed inside, and he was with her when she needed it most. He held her hand, and as soon as she gave birth, he brought the little babes over to her so that she could see the little girl that looked like her father and the boy that was the spitting image of his father. The only sign they were hers was that they both had their mother's eyes, just as Jareth had hoped. It wasn't until later that they found out that the twins were born on Christmas morning, which made Sarah quite happy. And the family was glad to see the pictures that Jareth showed them until they could go in and see them personally. The family went home for Christmas, allowing the happy couple some time together until the evening when they would descend en masse and check on her and the children.

"Well Jareth. Are you happy?"

"Very much so , my dear. But the bigger question is, how do you feel? Are you happy? Do you feel and comfortable? Can I do anything for you?"

"Just put your arm around me and kiss me. I got two very special gifts today for Christmas, and I will always treasure them. But, they would not be possible were it not for you. For all the patience and love you have given me until now. You were my first gift, and when I came into the hospital, I was worried about everything imaginable. But the whole time, I kept thinking how happy you would be when you saw me again. Though I was in so much pain, you gave me the strength to continue. There was only one thing I wanted for Christmas this year, and that was you. And now I have you. Thank you."

The End

Author's Notes: Yay! The official end! It was very fluffy, but we all knew that was going to happen….. Thanks again to all of you who have supported me while writing. I love you all dearly, and you make me smile!

JediViv: Hahaha, that is great! I'm glad it worked out so conveniently. Thanks for the review and for reading! I really do appreciate it!


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